Sharjah’s Sheraa will support more than 60 startups through a new AED5 million resilience fund, reinforcing entrepreneurship, innovation and economic growth across the UAE during challenging times.
WEBDESK – SHARJAH NEWS
SHARJAH: The Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa) has announced financial and strategic support for more than 60 startups and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through its newly launched Entrepreneurs Resilience Fund (ERF), a major initiative aimed at helping businesses overcome economic challenges and accelerate long-term growth.
The fund, which attracted more than 330 applications from startups across the UAE, will mobilize up to AED5 million through partnerships with public and private sector organizations. It combines equity-free grants with fast-tracked funding decisions, customized business support programs and expert advisory services designed to strengthen promising ventures.
The initiative reflects Sharjah’s continued commitment to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship while contributing to the UAE’s broader vision of building a knowledge-based economy.
“The ERF was established on a simple premise: viable businesses facing short-term pressures should not have to choose between preserving today’s operations and investing in tomorrow’s growth,” said HE Sara Abdulaziz Al Nuaimi, CEO of Sheraa.
She added that supporting entrepreneurs goes beyond helping individual businesses survive difficult periods. “It is about strengthening the entrepreneurial base that contributes to Sharjah’s economic diversification, innovation capacity and long-term competitiveness.”
The selected startups represent a wide range of high-impact industries, including healthcare, sustainability, food technology, artificial intelligence, accessibility, consumer products and digital innovation.
Among the companies chosen for support are Little Sprouties, Shukrani/Hylo, Chocoleaf, RAWA Wellness, Eshara AI, The AM Lab, BookMyPet, The Waste Lab and Ajada.
The announcement comes as the UAE continues to strengthen its position as one of the world’s leading destinations for entrepreneurs and innovators. According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) 2025/2026, the UAE ranked first globally for the fifth consecutive year for entrepreneurship. The country also ranked first in economic performance and second in business creation in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2026.
Sheraa’s latest initiative also supports the UAE’s national economic agenda, which aims to increase the number of active companies from 1.2 million to more than 2 million by 2031 while creating 30,000 new jobs through entrepreneurship by 2030.
Since its establishment, Sheraa has supported more than 600 startups, helping founders collectively raise over AED1.14 billion in investment capital.
For entrepreneurs, investors and innovators across the UAE—including the large South Asian business community in Sharjah and Dubai—the new resilience fund offers fresh opportunities to access funding, mentorship and strategic guidance while reinforcing Sharjah’s growing reputation as a regional hub for startups and innovation.
