Winter Nights Festival to boost small & medium enterprises

Winter Nights Festival, one of the economic stimulus initiatives for small and medium enterprises, started at Al Mouj Golf Square on Tuesday.

The festival is an initiative of the Ministry of Economy in cooperation with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (Riyada) to help boost SMES in line with the fifth goal of the strategic objectives of the tenth five-year development plan (2021-2025).

The festival started under the auspices of Dr Saud bin Hamoud al Habsi, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources.

The plan refers to stimulating economic activities in partnership with the private sector and supporting the role of small and medium enterprises. This is in addition to the festival providing areas of entertainment and promising opportunities to market the products of small and medium enterprises. It will run from November 29 to December 3 at Al Mouj Golf Square.

The Winter Nights Festival is a promising opportunity to market the products of small and medium enterprises, and craftsmen, enhance their sales, strengthen partnerships and communication between small and medium enterprises, highlight talents, provide attractive entertainment options, and promote the culture of acquiring Omani products. It also aims to create an atmosphere of fun and interaction for festival visitors, as the festival includes various activities and virtual game carts, in addition to 100 outlets for consumer and food products and 25 mobile food carts.

Khalfan bin Said al Khatri, Assistantdirectorofthemarketing and Events Department at the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority, said the idea of the festival was an extension of the Omani Creativity Exhibition that the Authority used to organise annually. Starting from 4 pm to 12 pm, the festival intends to promote Omani products.

The five-day festival will coincide with a group of artistic and theatrical performances, including a puppet shows, sand painting and face painting. In addition to presenting various offers for different ages in drawing and creative handicrafts, to other interactive art shows, in which many small and medium enterprises from different countries participate. Sectors included in this festival include perfumery, food, fashion, innovative industries, renewable energy and handicrafts.