MENA is an English-language acronym referring to the Middle East and North Africa. It is alternatively called the WANA. The region is typically considered to include around 19 countries. The following countries are often included in the MENA region: Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Palestine, and Yemen. Ethiopia, Sudan, and Western Sahara are also sometimes included. Doing business in the MENA (the Middle East and North Africa) region could yield great rewards for those with the initiative and drive to make their investment successful. In recent years, Middle Eastern and North African countries have been attempting to diversify their oil-based economies. This broadening of horizons has created an opportunity for global investors to venture further in the region. Setting up a business is exciting, but it requires level-headed planning. To be successful you need consider the logistics performance of the country in question, along with its reputation, ease of company setup process, simplicity of doing business, and opportunities for future growth.
If you’re considering this part of the world, here are few tips to improve your chances of finding the right place for your MENA business:
1. The best location for logistics
A quick look at the World Bank Logistics Performance Index (LPI) helps define all the logistical considerations in six points: customs, infrastructure, ease of shipping, tracking, and tracing, timeliness, as well as logistic services. These factors are important for all businesses and vital if you will be importing and/or exporting. The one MENA country that stands head and shoulders above all the rest is the UAE. It ranks 1st in the GCC and MENA. Globally it’s listed 11th, ahead of the United States and Switzerland. In terms of specifics, the UAE is placed 5th in the world for international shipments and 4th for timeliness. Meaning you can expect to have your deliveries reach their destinations by the deadline.
2. Finding an easy setup process
Here we have to consider procedures, time, cost, and minimum capital required to start a company. Different countries in the MENA region take different approaches to helping new businesses achieve this. There are a huge number of options, so it’s important to locate your company in a top-level business hub that can offer you a tailor-made solution. The UAE is always going to score highly when it comes to easy setup. Look for a hub within the UAE that gives you flexibility, allowing you to choose whether you want to set up on the mainland or in a free zone.
3. The importance of a good reputation
The MENA country you set up in will be a reflection of your business. Set up in one that is well respected for business equality and fairness, and this rubs off on the organization itself. It also affects how you are perceived by companies in the MENA (and wider) region with which you do business. The UAE has a great reputation for business for a number of reasons. It’s politically stable, has a strong economy, and offers state-of-the-art infrastructure. Its laws prohibit monopoly and encourage competition, while maintaining intellectual property rights and trademarks. No surprise then that it’s probably the major international business hub of the Middle East. Even if you do business outside of the UAE, being based there puts you in great standing with the MENA region.
4. Having the room to expand
Whatever the size of your business right now, you’re probably aiming to grow. This means you need to keep options open, because what might be the best choice now, especially in terms of location and suppliers, may change in the future. You need a location that offers flexibility. One that has good access to other markets and one that lets you expand your offering. On top the strong economy and great transport links, choosing the right business hub in the UAE brings peace of mind that you are set up for years to come.
If you’re an aspiring entrepreneur and are able adjust to the tradition and culture of Arab and African world, doing business in MENA can be extremely rewarding.
Being in the UAE market and having a diverse business profile, we believe we have somewhat cracked how business is supposed to be done, and we want to help future entrepreneurs and business enthusiast realize their true potential. Under our Business Consultancy division, we provide:
As a part of our Business Setup Services, we provide:
UAE Company Formation
We Provide UAE company Formation services to our clients. The UAE economy is divided between “onshore” and “offshore “sector. Onshore sector is dominated by local business interests with restrictions on foreign ownership and the Offshore sector consists of number of #freezones.
Setting up in Free Trade Zone
We Facilitate Business Setup in the various Free Trade zones. Identifying the right Free Zone, Licenses and all the Legalities is on us.
Setting up In Mainland
We facilitate Business Setup in various emirates in the UAE by identifying the most suitable emirate for your business, Planning, providing local Partner/Sponsor/Service agent. Warehousing, Logistics, Also the manpower and HR services if required.
Registrations
The normal conduct of Business requires an organization to be registered with several authorities based on the specific nature of the business. We help our clients by providing an expert hand and waling them through all matters pertaining to registrations as Chamber of Commerce, ESMA, FTA-VAT, Ministry of Health, Dubai Municipality, #trademarks and other product Certifications and Registrations.
Visit https://ftrade.ae/business-consultancy/ to know more on this.
