Sharjah: SiltaNews – News Desk
The Sharjah Entrepreneurship Centre (Sheraa) has concluded the first edition of the Sharjah Women Impact Fellowship (SWIF), bringing together 12 women founders in a programme focused on leadership development and venture growth. The initiative aims to support women-led businesses and strengthen their presence within Sharjah’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and the wider region.
The programme provided founders with training in leadership and venture management, while connecting them with investors, mentors and ecosystem partners. It also laid the foundation for SWIF to evolve into a long-term platform supporting women-led ventures. Sara Abdelaziz Al Nuaimi, CEO of Sheraa, said the fellowship reflected a growing maturity among women founders in managing their ventures and navigating challenges, underscoring the importance of a supportive ecosystem.
Fellows also received financial support through an AED500,000 grant provided by Fikri Business Consultants to support business development and expansion. Endowed by Dr. Asma Fikri and Amna Fikri, daughters of the late Dr. Mahmoud Mohamed Fikri, former WHO Regional Director, the grant honors his legacy of empowering women and advancing community well-being. SWIF also contributed to advancing the regional conversation on women’s entrepreneurship through a collaboration with the Meem Foundation, which is conducting a research study examining funding gaps for women-led ventures. Fellows participated in the study as interview subjects, helping generate insights that can inform future policies, funding mechanisms, and ecosystem support for women founders across the region.
SWIF adopted a rigorous selection process, which included an evaluation by sheraa’s CEO, a weighted rubric, psychometric assessments, and behavioural interviews, focusing on founders already leading ventures with clear traction and the capacity to scale with intention. The fellowship curriculum followed Sheraa’s 4D model: Discover, Define, Develop, and Deepen, guiding founders through a sequenced journey that connects personal leadership reflection with strategic venture development and broader ecosystem engagement.
The SWIF journey was delivered in collaboration with partners, including Accenture, Publicis Groupe, Orbis Terra Media, the Pearl Initiative, Kearney, EY, and Microsoft, each contributing expertise across leadership development, branding, impact, and venture growth. The programme was further supported by key sponsors, including Fikri Business Consultants, Shurooq, Meem Foundation, and Sultan bin Ali Al Owais Real Estate, whose contributions enabled the successful delivery of the fellowship.
Throughout the programme, founders progressed through a curated SWIF journey designed to strengthen both leadership and venture development. This included a leadership retreat in Kalba, followed by a series of founder-focused engagements such as workshops and sessions with Accenture, and SWIF X Publicis’ Atelier Potentialis. The journey also featured conversations with ecosystem leaders, including a fireside chat with Haleema Al Owais, alongside practical sessions on personal branding delivered with Orbis Terra Media.
Founders had the opportunity to further develop their ventures through Scale Up MENA masterclasses, as well as deepen their understanding of impact measurement through a session with the Pearl Initiative. The programme concluded with a policy and advocacy readiness workshop with Kearney, alongside a closing conversation with Dr Asma Fikri, Impact Partner and grant donor to SWIF, bringing together key reflections from the journey. As the programme unfolded, founders advanced both their leadership journeys and the growth of their ventures while building new relationships across the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.