The Saudi Aramco Entrepreneurship Center (Wa'ed), the newly established subsidiary of the company, launched its interactive website (www.waed.net) at the start of this year as an initial step to encourage young Saudis to establish their own enterprises. Wa'ed was established by Saudi Aramco last November to support and spread the culture of entrepreneurship among young Saudis starting out in business by providing them with financing and helping them incubate their new enterprises. The center has already allocated SR750 million as an initial source of non-collateralized funds to finance small and medium entrepreneurs develop their business talents and create employment opportunities. Fahd Al-Semari, managing director of Wa'ed, has announced a plan to create economic clusters that will establish business incubation projects in cooperation with King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM) during the next two years. KFUPM will hold a workshop on entrepreneurship Tuesday, Jan. 10, which will include Saudi Aramco's entrepreneurship thrust through Wa'ed. The website is a cooperative portal that will mainly serve as the platform for young entrepreneurs to explore and develop business opportunities. The site also provides links that will help aspiring entrepreneurs plan their future enterprises. __
