Sri Lanka participates at 2nd Global Franchise and SME Exposition and Forum in Bahrain

Kingdom of Bahrain Capital Governorate Governor Sheikh Hisham bin Abdul Al-Khalifa and Middle East and North Africa Franchise Association (MENAFA) Chairman Dr. Khalid Alsharfa presenting a token of appreciation to Dr. Mendis

The Chief Guest, Governor of Capital Governorate of Kingdom of Bahrain with the VIP guests and keynote speakers, including Ambassador Dr. Mendis and other Ambassadors and dignitaries

The high profile ‘2nd Global Franchise and SME Exposition and Forum’ in Bahrain was conducted and organised by the Middle East and North Africa Franchise Association (MENAFA), which is the membership organisation of franchisors, franchisees, SMEs and services providers in the region of MENA. This Association, which is global in nature, consists of industry association serving $ 30 billion franchise sector growing at an unprecedented rate of over 25% annually in the MENA region. The Global Franchise and SME Exposition and Forum promotes economic, business and commercial growth, advancement and expansion, with particular focus on SMEs and franchises, regionally and globally. The forum annually selects a couple of personalities with extensive and expansive experience and exposure in the realm of SMEs, franchises, entrepreneurship development and geo-economic issues to deliver the keynote addresses at the opening ceremony of the Global Franchise and SME Exposition and Forum. 

The forum organisers invited Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the Kingdom of Bahrain Dr. A. Saj U. Mendis and Bahrain Development of Small and Medium Enterprises Society Chairman Dr. Ahmed Al Saloom. 

A large number of select invitees were present, including secretaries and senior officials of ministries, senior bureaucrats and technocrats, Ambassadors and diplomats based in Bahrain, corporate executives and captains, leading franchises, presidents and board members of SME and entrepreneur associations in the region and academia, among others. The Chief Guest of this prestigious forum was the Governor of Capital Governorate of the Kingdom of Bahrain Sheikh Hisham bin Abdul Rahman Al Khalifa. 

The Chairman of Middle East and North Africa Franchise Association (MENAFA) Dr. Khalid Alsharfa,

in his opening remarks, underscored and underlined that the Bahrain Franchise and Exposition presents a unique market place for the growing franchise and Small and Medium Entrepreneurs (SMEs) to become mid-level to large corporates and entities and then to transcend to regional and global players on the economic and commercial landscape of the region as well as the world. 

The Chairman further added that this Forum would extend exhibitors with the opportunities to showcase and profile their brands, products and services in a professionally organised and structured environment with a highly targeted audience of potential buyers, investors, franchisees, entrepreneurs and industry professionals to establish and to forge partnerships and generate new business and commercial ventures. 

Both the keynote speakers, i.e. Dr. Saj Mendis and Dr. Ahmed Al Saloom, highlighted the vitality and seminality of the SME and entrepreneurial sector to any country, be it a developed nation or a developing nation. Ambassador Dr. Mendis, in his address, stated that the Government of Sri Lanka is extending increasing degree of importance and conspicuity to the SME and entrepreneurship sector as well as to entrepreneurship development. This is particularly because a vibrant and strong SME sector coupled with entrepreneurship development could fuel economic, business, investment and commercial advancement and augmentation. 

Further, both the speakers added that the SME sector is often referred and defined as the pillar of any given economy. However, the critical role played by the SME sector has not been extended due distinction and significance opposed to ‘Fortune 500’ companies and other large multi-national corporates. Dr. Mendis stressed that the development of SME sector could reduce unemployment and inequality and engender innovative ideas, creativity, innovation, economic dynamism and entrepreneurship, thus unleashing the entrepreneurial capabilities and unlocking the dormant potential. He also stated that the Government Policy Framework fosters and nurtures micro-enterprises to become small enterprises to become mid-size enterprises to large enterprises to national players and regional players respectively.

In the context of franchises, both the keynote speakers impressed and accentuate the fact that any given SME can become a large corporate or global entity by growing organically, through acquisitions, placing initial public offerings (IPOs), or extending franchises, or a combination of any of the above. 

Dr. Mendis stated that some of the iconic brands, such as Hilton, McDonald’s, Body Shop, Taco Bell, Hard Rock Café, Pizza Hut and Marriot Hotels, to name a few, had all begun in a humble and modest manner and today, they have evolved as corporate behemoths and household names. One of their telling alchemies of success was the strategy of franchising, he added. Both the speakers punctuated that one of the distinct advantages of franchising is that the respective companies would be known not only nationally or regionally, but globally as well. 

In this regard, it is critical for the respective company to have a stellar and highly marketable and demanded line of products and services to transcend to the sphere of franchising. Ambassador Mendis added that some of the largest and most respected companies and corporates in the world today were founded just three to four decades ago. These corporates include Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook, Google, Alibaba, Softbank and Uber. These global corporates began not only as SMEs but as micro SMEs; in other words, having less than nine employees on their payroll, and in garages and college dormitories. Today, these companies are supposedly the most valuable companies, having a market capitalisation in the range of $500 billion to one trillion. Both the speakers articulated the fact that these global companies and their respective founders had a well-defined vision and dream to make them global players within a particular passage of time.  

The primary objectives of the Global Franchise and SME Exposition and Forum were to exchange innovative and state-of-the-art ideas and business concepts with different and multifarious companies and burgeoning corporates as well as with other companies in foreign countries, to explore and identify strategies and approaches to progress and navigate advancement of SMEs, propositions to extend franchises, entrepreneurship development in different countries in order to find out challenges and opportunities for SMEs and franchises to cross-fertilise and forge business, economic and commercial relations and ventures, among others. 

Further, the officials of Global Franchise and SME Exposition and Forum expressed eagerness to foster and nurture the concept of franchising and development of SMEs – particularly, with developing nations such as Sri Lanka. 

Ambassador Dr. Mendis obtained his Ph.D. in International Economic Policy with focus on SME/Entrepreneurial Development from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi, and is a visiting faculty member/guest speaker at a number of universities and academic institutions, including NTU of Singapore, Boston University, Graduate Institute of Policy Studies of Tokyo, Indian Institute of Finance of Delhi, and Harvard, among others.