The Governor of the Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority “Monsha’at”, Engineer Saleh bin Ibrahim Al-Rasheed, emphasized that the regulation governing the work of business incubators in the Kingdom, approved by the authority’s Board of Directors, will provide a suitable environment for investment and expansion in supporting innovation and entrepreneurship, and will increase government and private sector investment in the SME sector. He thanked the authority’s Board of Directors, chaired by the Minister of Commerce and Investment and Chairman of the Board, Doctor Majid bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi, for approving the regulation.

The Governor of Monsha’at explained that the regulation aims to attract local and foreign investors to invest in incubated companies, encourage existing platforms to expand and offer more services, and raise awareness among the relevant entities of incubators, accelerators, and coworking spaces and their role in supporting entrepreneurial projects and startups.

Engineer Saleh Al-Rasheed noted that the regulation includes several provisions, including the mechanism for applying for a license for business incubators, business accelerators, and coworking spaces and the conditions for approving the application, the basic services that must be provided to beneficiaries, and the mechanism for inspecting and monitoring incubators.

The Governor of Monsha’at invited those concerned and interested from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors in the Kingdom to visit the website to view the full provisions of the regulation and the conditions and steps for applying for a license.

Monsha’at defined business incubators as “an entity that aims to support the establishment and growth of entrepreneurial projects and startups by providing a package of services and resources, including workspaces, business development services, consultation, guidance, mentoring, and training services, and participation in various events, in addition to facilitating access to funding or investment in the project, provided that these are delivered within a specified period.”

It defined business accelerators as “an entity that offers intensive programs to accelerate the growth and expansion of entrepreneurial companies and startups over a period usually ranging from three to six months, by providing a package of services and resources, including workspaces, business development services, consultation, guidance, mentoring, and training services, and participation in various events, in addition to providing funding for the project and facilitating access to investors in exchange for a stake in the company.”

Monsha’at defined coworking spaces as “an entity based on the sharing economy that aims to provide shared workspaces and meeting rooms that can be rented by the hour, day, or month to entrepreneurs, startup owners, freelancers, and companies, with basic services such as furnished closed or open offices and telecommunications and secretarial services, in addition to the possibility of holding events and workshops and providing consultation services.”

Monsha’at sought to establish a regulation for the work of business incubators as one of the tasks entrusted to it under Council of Ministers Resolution No. 301 dated 11/7/1437H, which approved the organization of the Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority and whose Paragraph 11 of Article Three states that the authority’s tasks include establishing and regulating technology and business incubators.