Dubai Culture launches Mobtakir diploma for entrepreneurs

Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) has launched Mobtakir, a maker diploma and fast-track programme, to offer entrepreneurs the knowledge, hands-on skills and local market knowledge to start product-based businesses.

The diploma, which will start on May 27, in partnership with Colab, will initially run for seven weeks until mid-July and then resume in early September 2023.

Applicants have until May 20 to submit their applications for the non-technical diploma, according to the Dubai Media Office.

The diploma, which has been accredited by the KHDA, has been designed to provide a standardised qualification and local methodology to nurture innovation organically starting with individual entrepreneurs.

The diploma, which includes 14 modules and workshops, will be delivered across a host of venues in Al Quoz by technical experts from different industries.

Highlights of Mobtakir

Mobtakir falls under the umbrella of Al Quoz Creative Zone and was designed in partnership with The Mohammed bin Rashid Establishment for Small and Medium Enterprises Development (Dubai SME), one of the corporations of Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET).

Khulood Khoory, director of the Projects and Events Department at Dubai Culture, said, “At Dubai Culture, we recognise the importance of talent development in our emirate’s cultural and creative industries. The Mobtakir programme is a perfect example of our commitment to nurturing and empowering local creators and makers. We believe this programme will equip entrepreneurs with the necessary skills and knowledge to turn their product ideas into successful businesses.

“We are excited to see the impact that Mobtakir will have on the maker community in the UAE and are proud of this initiative, which will bring us closer to the objectives of the Dubai Creative Economy Strategy to make the emirate the global creative economy capital by increasing the contribution of these industries to 5 per cent of our GDP.”

The diploma includes soft and hard skill development in three main areas and culminates in implementing learnings via a ‘Makathon’ competition between allocated groups and assigned projects.

Saeed Matar Al Marri, deputy CEO of Dubai SME, stated, “This initiative will facilitate the growth of the maker community by equipping them with the essential resources and expertise to establish innovative product-based companies. Our collaboration with Dubai Culture will undoubtedly aid us in achieving the goals of the Dubai Economic Agenda, D33, which are centred on advancing entrepreneurship and innovation, and promoting a knowledge-based economy to further consolidate Dubai’s status as one of the top three global cities.”

Read: Here’s what Dubai’s ambitious D33 agenda aims to achieve

Mobtakir aims to enable awareness of prototyping technologies, resources, knowledge and skills that are increasingly at the disposal of regular non-technical individuals, with a particular focus on the capabilities available in Al Quoz.

Applications are currently open and without charge to all residents in the UAE, including students, professionals, small business owners or employees who lead entrepreneurial or innovation endeavours in their organisations.

Richard Wilson, founder and creative director, of Colab, said: “No previous experience or skill is required; however, applicants who show a keen business vision and possess enough passion and dedication to pursue their product ideas will certainly have an advantage as the aim of the scheme is to qualify entrepreneurs and increase their chances of success in innovating and commercialising new products in our local market.

“Mobtakir builds on a prior diploma developed and launched in 2018 by Dubai Economy in collaboration with OriginBase. This latest iteration factors in all of the learnings from the earlier programme to offer prospects a new and comprehensive diploma that will certainly elevate and empower the maker community in the UAE.”