Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth and Tamkeen partner
New York and Manama -- The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth and the Bahrain's Labour Fund (Tamkeen) today announced a strategic partnership to explore the launch of the first Mastercard Strive program in the Middle East, aimed at advancing financial and digital readiness for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Bahrain.
This landmark collaboration seeks to empower Bahraini SMEs and entrepreneurs with the tools and resources they need to scale up, digitize, and drive inclusive economic growth. The initiative will explore a scalable model of collaboration between Bahrain and the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, reinforcing Bahrain's position as a regional leader in SME development.
The Mastercard Strive program—already active in several countries—has helped over 12 million small businesses worldwide since 2020 by facilitating access to capital, digital tools, and knowledge networks. If adopted in Bahrain, the program would mark its first implementation in the Middle East, further expanding its global footprint and regional impact.
His Excellency Shaikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Minister of Finance and National Economy of the Kingdom of Bahrain, underscored the importance of this initiative during his keynote address at the 2025 Global Inclusive Growth Summit (GIGS), stating: 'The Kingdom of Bahrain has always prioritized fostering a supportive environment that enables SMEs to succeed and grow as they continue to play a pivotal role in the economy. This partnership with Mastercard will pave the way for SMEs in Bahrain to utilize financial and digital tools to enhance their operations and improve their productivity'
This collaboration aligns with Tamkeen's 2025 strategic priorities, which focus on strengthening the competitiveness of Bahrainis in the private sector, accelerating enterprise digitization and sustainability, and enhancing the labour market ecosystem.
According to the Bahrain 2023 Economic Report, SMEs account for 93% of all enterprises in the Kingdom. Of these, 79% are Bahraini-owned, 40% are owned by women, and 25% are led by young people. SMEs also contributed to 10% of Bahrain's total exports and employed more than 44,000 Bahrainis in 2023.
By combining Mastercard's global expertise in inclusive growth with Tamkeen's local leadership in economic development, this partnership aims to create a robust and resilient ecosystem that enables Bahraini SMEs to thrive in the digital economy and contribute to long-term national prosperity.
'We have always known that small businesses are the engine of the global economy, and help create opportunity and growth for communities,' said Shamina Singh, the founder and president of Mastercard's Center for Inclusive Growth. 'Through Mastercard Strive, the Center is excited to partner with the Kingdom of Bahrain and Tamkeen to help Bahrainis thrive in the private sector while building their skills in financial and digital readiness.'
About the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth
The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth advances equitable and sustainable economic growth and financial inclusion around the world. The Center leverages the company's core assets and competencies, including data insights, expertise, and technology, while administering the philanthropic Mastercard Impact Fund, to produce independent research, scale global programs, and empower a community of thinkers, leaders, and doers on the front lines of inclusive growth. For more information and to receive its latest insights, follow the Center on LinkedIn, Instagram and subscribe to its newsletter.
About the Labour Fund 'Tamkeen'
Established in 2006, Tamkeen supports Bahrain's private sector by empowering local talent and enabling enterprises to grow and thrive. Its program focuses on employment, skills development, and enterprise support to position Bahrainis as the first choice in the labor market. For more information, visit www.tamkeen.bh or follow @TamkeenBahrain on social media.
For media inquiries, please contact: media@tamkeen.bh
For general information: support@tamkeen.bh
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Zawya
7 hours ago
- Zawya
QNB first bank in GCC to launch commercial unified digital wallet integration using Mastercard Gateway
Doha: QNB has achieved another major milestone by becoming the first bank in the GCC to enable Digital Wallet acceptance through a single, unified integration on the Mastercard Gateway Hosted Checkout platform. The solution leverages Mastercard Gateway's latest Hosted Checkout capability, where Digital Wallets are enabled through a single integration flow for both web and mobile environments. This approach reduces technical complexity, improves time-to-market and enhances merchant satisfaction, particularly for small and mid-sized businesses that benefit most from ready-to-deploy payment technologies. With this advancement, QNB is leading the way in simplifying digital wallet acceptance for merchants through a scalable, seamless and fully integrated solution. The implementation ensures that all new e-commerce merchants onboarded through Hosted Checkout will be automatically enabled to accept digital wallets at once. Additionally, all existing QNB Hosted Checkout merchants will also be upgraded to accept digital wallets without any development time and cost. Adel Ali Al Malki, Senior Executive Vice President, Group Retail Banking at QNB, commented: 'QNB continues to lead in Cards and Payments by offering best-in-class payment solutions to our merchant community. Through this unified integration, we are delivering not only an advanced technology, but also a more robust and secure next-generation digital commerce. As the industry leader in acquiring business, QNB is committed to further scaling digital acceptance with relevance and simplicity. We continue empowering every QNB merchant to deliver seamless, secure and modern payment experiences to their customers.' Erdem Cakar, Country Manager for Qatar and Kuwait at Mastercard, said: 'At Mastercard, we're committed to transforming the way businesses and consumers engage with digital payments. Our collaboration with QNB to introduce the GCC's first unified digital wallet integration demonstrates our focus on empowering merchants with cutting-edge, streamlined payment solutions. This milestone advances our vision of building a thriving, inclusive digital economy that delivers enhanced convenience and security for everyone.' As the largest acquirer in Qatar, QNB's leadership in payments innovation has been demonstrated consistently through key initiatives across major industry sectors. © Dar Al Sharq Press, Printing and Distribution. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
Zawya
9 hours ago
- Zawya
Qatar's QNB first GCC bank to launch commercial unified digital wallet integration using Mastercard gateway
Qatar - QNB has achieved another 'major milestone' by becoming the first bank in the GCC to enable 'Digital Wallet' acceptance through a single, unified integration on the Mastercard gateway 'Hosted Checkout' platform. The solution leverages Mastercard Gateway's latest Hosted Checkout capability, where Digital Wallets are enabled through a single integration flow for both web and mobile environments. This approach reduces technical complexity, improves time-to-market and enhances merchant satisfaction, particularly for small and mid-sized businesses that benefit most from ready-to-deploy payment technologies. With this advancement, QNB is leading the way in simplifying digital wallet acceptance for merchants through a scalable, seamless and fully integrated solution. The implementation ensures that all new e-commerce merchants onboarded through Hosted Checkout will be automatically enabled to accept digital wallets at once. Additionally, all existing QNB Hosted Checkout merchants will also be upgraded to accept digital wallets without any development time and cost. Adel Ali al-Malki, Senior Executive Vice-President, Group Retail Banking at QNB, commented: 'QNB continues to lead in Cards and Payments by offering best-in-class payment solutions to our merchant community. Through this unified integration, we are delivering not only an advanced technology, but also a more robust and secure next-generation digital commerce. 'As the industry leader in acquiring business, QNB is committed to further scaling digital acceptance with relevance and simplicity. We continue empowering every QNB merchant to deliver seamless, secure and modern payment experiences to their customers.' Erdem Cakar, Country Manager (Qatar and Kuwait) at Mastercard, said, 'At Mastercard, we are committed to transforming the way businesses and consumers engage with digital payments. Our collaboration with QNB to introduce the GCC's first unified digital wallet integration demonstrates our focus on empowering merchants with cutting-edge, streamlined payment solutions. 'This milestone advances our vision of building a thriving, inclusive digital economy that delivers enhanced convenience and security for everyone.' As the largest acquirer in Qatar, QNB's leadership in payments innovation has been demonstrated consistently through key initiatives across major industry sectors. © Gulf Times Newspaper 2025 Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
Zawya
a day ago
- Zawya
Stc Bahrain announces second consecutive year of transformative ‘jeel ICT' program
Manama, Bahrain: stc Bahrain, a digital enabler, announced the launch of its transformative jeel ICT program for the second consecutive year. The program comes in partnership with the Ministry of Labour and the Labour Fund (Tamkeen) and bridge the gap between academic learning and on-job learning, directly addressing the growing demand for digital expertise. The program is a flagship initiative of stc Bahrain's corporate social responsibility arm, stc Jusoor, jeel ICT, the 100% nationalized program is a key part of stc Bahrain's commitment to Bahrain's Economic Vision 2030, empowering young Bahrainis with critical technical and business skills for the Kingdom's evolving digital economy which makes this program a strategic investment in Bahrain's human capital. It equips Bahraini youth and recent graduates with vital technical, business, leadership, and entrepreneurial skills crucial for the rapidly expanding ICT and FinTech sectors. Demonstrating its success, jeel ICT will continue to culminate in full-time employment offers for outstanding graduates. 15 jeel ICT alumni have already secured positions at stc Bahrain over the past year program, providing a strong foundation for future aspirants. This directly impacts their lives and career trajectories and will continue to contribute significantly to Bahrain's vision of becoming a regional ICT and FinTech leader. His Excellency Mr. Youssef bin Al-Hussein Khalaf, Minister of Legal Affairs and Acting Minister of Labour, emphasized the importance of professionally preparing and qualifying job seekers to meet labor market requirements, particularly in the telecommunications and digital technology sector, which is considered a promising, vital, and attractive field for citizens. He also praised stc Bahrain's initiative to train and employ university graduate citizens. He highlighted that the launch of the second edition of the jeel ICT program, in partnership with the Ministry of Labour and the Labour Fund (Tamkeen), reflects a strong community partnership supporting the development of national human resources. The program helps refine participants' core skills and provides direct hands-on experience in the telecommunications and IT environment. He stressed that initiatives like this strengthen the Ministry's efforts to align education and training outcomes with the needs of the labor market. Eng. Khalid Al Osaimi, Chief Executive Officer of stc Bahrain, stated: 'We are proud to launch the stc Bahrain jeel ICT program again this year, a testament to our dedication to Bahrain's future and the development of its youth. This program is a vital driver for national talent growth, not only enhancing employment prospects but actively shaping a new generation of digital leaders. We extend our sincere appreciation and gratitude to our key partners – the Ministry of Labour, and the Labour Fund (Tamkeen), whose invaluable support and collaboration are instrumental in our pursuit to continue with this program. By investing in the ICT skills of our young people and facilitating their full-time employment, we are directly contributing to Bahrain's thriving digital economy. The success of our first group proves how much talent Bahrain has, and we look forward to helping more tech leaders emerge who will bring new ideas and success for many years.' This partnership aligns with Tamkeen's strategic priorities for 2025, which focus on enhancing the position and competitiveness of Bahrainis in the private sector, equipping Bahrainis with suitable skills for career development in the private sector, and prioritizing enterprise growth, digitization, and sustainability, and supporting the development of the ecosystem surrounding the labor market and private sector. Her Excellency Ms. Maha Abdulhameed Mofeez, Chief Executive of the Labour Fund 'Tamkeen' said: 'We are pleased to be part of this strategic partnership aimed at developing the skills of local talent in the rapidly growing ICT sector. Through this partnership, we aspire to bridge the gap between the specialized skills in demand and the high-quality, sustainable job opportunities in the labour market. This serves our mandate of making Bahrainis the preferred choice for employment in the private sector. We are also pleased to witness the positive outcomes of the program, reflected in the employment of several graduates from the previous batch in quality jobs, which demonstrates the program's effectiveness in empowering national talent and supporting their career prospects.' The jeel ICT program highlights stc Bahrain's dedication to community development by creating a robust talent pipeline for both stc Bahrain and the Kingdom's ICT sector. Continuing the success of previous initiatives like the Graduate Development Program (GDP), jeel ICT program reinforces stc Bahrain's legacy of nurturing future-ready talent for the Kingdom's evolving digital landscape. The jeel ICT program is open for Bahraini nationals who graduated during the academic year of 2024– 2025, and aged between 20 – 23 years, with a strong background in Engineering / IT/ Computer Science. Applications can be submitted by visiting
