Doha                                                                                                                                                                                   02 May 2018

Qatar Development Bank (QDB), in collaboration with Qatar Chamber, NAMA Center and the Ministry of Administrative Development Labor & Social Affairs announces the launch of its second edition of the 'Made at Home' Exhibition during a special press conference held at its headquarters this morning of Wednesday. The five-day event will be hosted at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center, starting from 14^th -20^th October , 2018.

As part of the National program initiative for developing Homebased businesses , 'Made at Home' exhibition was launched by Qatar Development Bank in 2015 to support local produces and growth of the local economy.

The exhibition aims at encouraging and supporting Qatari home-based entrepreneurs  to develop their abilities & capabilities by offering them a unique opportunity to display their products & services to the local market by creating new marketing windows, which will contribute to the diversification of the national economy. This approach will support the SME industry, encourage new entrepreneurial pursuits and empowermicor businesses.

144 local home based business houses took part in first edition of 'Made at Home' which included variety of sectors including crafts, technologies, Food & beverages and  jewelry made almost total sales of QAR 2.5 million. Over 15,000 visitors of several nationalities had visited the exhibition.

AbdulAziz Bin Nasser Al-Khalifa, CEO, Qatar Development Bank in his address announcing of the event said 'The 2^nd edition of the 'Made at home' exhibition is organized as a continuation to the success of the exhibition in its first year and serves as a purpose to greater participation of home-based businesses. This is in line with Qatar Development Bank’s strategy to support home-based businesses and to improve their economic and social stability and in return contribute to the sustainability and diversification of the national economy, which is in line with Qatar’s National Vision 2030.

He said that Due to the pivotal role the Home-based business play and the significant impact they have in contributing to the development of the national economy, QDB will continue to support and empower these businesses , enhance entrepreneurs’ skills, improve levels of production and provide them with market access opportunities  to transform these businesses into larger enterprises s in the near future.

AlKhalifa said that exhibition offers home-based businesses a unique opportunity to display and sell their products, create new marketing and distribution channels, exchange experiences with other home-based business owners who are involved in a range of specialized fields, and showcase their projects on a wide scale.'

Saleh bin Hamad Al Sharqi, Director General, Qatar Chamber of Commerce extended his deep thanks to Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Chairperson of Qatar Museums for her continuing support to the 'Made at Home' exhibition, praising her considerable role in social, humanitarian and cultural spaces.

Sharqi said that Qatar Chamber is proud to be strategic partner in organising of the expo with aim to promote, support and develop the home-made products. He affirmed the chamber’s keen interest in supporting the  home-based entrepreneurs as a significant component of the national economy, pointing out that the chamber has helped them participate in a number of exhibitions, such as 'Made in Qatar', in which more than 140 productive families showcased their products.

QC’s Director General cited the first edition success in promoting 144 home-based businesses specialized in producing garment, jewelries, handcrafts and foodstuffs. He expressed his hope that the second edition of the expo will achieve its objectives and contribute to developing skills and capacities of home-based entrepreneurs.

Around 250 exhibitors are expected to participate in this year’s 'Made at Home' exhibition, showcasing a wide range of local products in sectors such as Fashion, , jewelry, arts &crafts, food & Beverage and many more.