Arab Union for Small Enterprises

UNION PROFILE

Background:

The Arab Union for Small Enterprises, or AUSE, is a regional Arab organization established under the umbrella of the Council of Arab Economic Unity. The Union membership embraces institutions, organizations, agencies, funds, federations, associations, centers, public and private companies as well as non-governmental organizations active in developing, financing, supporting, and promoting small and micro enterprises in Arab countries. The Union assists its members in achieving their tasks and objectives and consolidates mutual cooperation and coordination among them.

Union’s overall aim is to boost and correlate the areas of activities of its members in order to develop and upgrade Arab small enterprises; to increase their competitiveness; to strengthen cooperation ties among them; and to contribute to the realization of inter-Arab economic integration. The Union acts according to the functions and terms of reference assigned to it and build on its experience in extending support to the institutions, associations, syndicates and unions concerned with small enterprise development, particularly in the following domains:

• Exchanging know-how and gained expertise on small enterprise development.
• Mitigating unemployment in the Arab region by expanding the base of entrepreneurs via the establishment of small enterprises.
• Contributing to the sponsorship and patronage of the strata of small and medium entrepreneurs, and supporting employment opportunities through technical and administrative assistance.
• Promoting the spirit and culture of entrepreneurship among Arab youth.
  Empowering Arab women in the field of small enterprise. Development.
  Developing human resources and making the best use of all possible natural resources in the Arab world through small enterprise creation and development.
• Applying integration criteria among small and medium enterprises in Arab countries and emulating successful experience and practices.
  Encouraging Arab investments and partnerships and initiating joint ventures as a step toward Arab economic integration.
• Fostering Arab cooperation and integration in the areas of industry, agriculture, services, trade, technology and information in a manner that would support and develop the Arab economy through the sector of small and medium enterprises.
• Standardizing Arab legislation relating to small and micro enterprise support and development.
• Mobilizing financial and developmental resources from Arab and international sources, and channeling such resources to the sector of small and medium enterprises.

Headquarters:

This means the permanent headquarters of the Union in one of the Arab countries. It encompasses the General Secretariat that performs tasks and activities assigned to the Union. The permanent Headquarters may be affiliated with offices or branches whether within the same country where the Union is headquartered in or within any of the member states.
The Social Fund for Development in the Arab Republic of Egypt hosts the Union’s Headquarters in Cairo. The Union’s General Secretariat is composed of a Secretary General and two deputies assisted by a number of staff in accordance with the Union’s organizational structure.

Objectives:

Pursuant to the general objectives contained in Article (4) of the Statute, the Union shall:

1- Support and assist its members in:
     a- Developing and upgrading working methods to maximize the economic impact, and sharing know-how on small enterprise development.
     b- Accessing state-of–the-art technologies at best procurement terms and conditions, and customizing these technologies in a manner that agrees with members’ activities, type of equipment, and settings.
     c- Conducting the research and pre-feasibility studies of the small pilot projects to be set up in Arab countries, and getting advice and counsel on the specialized Arab and foreign expert houses they could contact.
    d- Developing recommendations and providing support as regards the creation of new enterprises and/or the expansion of existing ones in a way that fulfills the requirements of Arab states.
    e- Providing solutions to technical, trade, or other problems once they arise to members while performing their assigned tasks.
    f- Outsourcing members’ needs of materials, equipment, and supplies, when necessary or deemed profitable, at best price and quality; and urging members to reciprocally exchange with each other production materials and supplies,                as necessary.
    g- Organizing and participating in Arab and international exhibitions promoting the products of small enterprises.
2- Urge small enterprises, institutions and companies, which are members of the Union, to act as one entity when dealing with other organizations.
3- Encourage the exchange of franchised enterprises to further support small enterprise development, and deepen cooperation between small and big enterprises.
4- Act as arbitrator when solicited, and take part in arbitration proceedings upon request. 
5- Negotiate in the name of members, and consolidate relations with international, regional and Arab developmental and financial organizations to mobilizing aid and/or raising funds for small enterprises.
6- Encourage members to establish Arab joint ventures and submit the schemes of establishment of such ventures to the Council of Arab Economic Unity, the Arab Organization for Industrial Development and Mining, or any other Arab organization competent to decide on their approval. 
7- Forge close cooperation ties with other Arab unions and organizations to attain the objectives pursued by the Union, and conclude collaborative agreements and protocols with foreign organizations whose areas of activities relate to those of the Union.
8- Design training and re-training programs to improve the efficiency of the staff/workers involved in Union’s activities, and provide assistance to support the implementation of these programs.
9- Publish newsletters and periodicals and organize seminars as a means to accomplish the Union’s objectives and purposes.
10- Participate in Arab and international conferences and events tackling issues of relevance to the activities of the Union and/or its members.
11- Provide updated Arab and international technical, economic and trade statistics and information on production requirements and supplies, intermediate and raw materials, and end products.
12- Assist members in cross-staffing executives and technical professionals to meet mutual needs.  

They are composed of:
i-       Membership fees.
ii-     The annual subscriptions of members as defined in the regulations approved by the General Assembly.
iii-   The grants, donations and gifts, which the Board of Directors decides to accept from Arab or international agencies and organizations, in addition to financial contributions other than these subject to the approval of the General Assembly.
iv-   The proceeds of fee-paying services delivered by the Union, and the resources allocated by the Board of Directors to fulfill its needs.

Founding Members:

Egypt – Syria – Kuwait – Saudi Arabia – Jordan  - United Arab Emirates –     the Sudan – Lebanon – Yemen – Tunisia – Oman.

Membership

The membership of the Union consists of:
a. Active members.
b. Associate members.
c. Observer members. 

Active membership:

Active membership of the Union is open to Arab institutions, companies, unions, agencies, funds and centers operating in the field specified in Article (1) of the Statute. The applicant must be willing to join the Union as active member and must be capable of making effective contributions to its activities. At least 51% of the capital of the active member must be owned by Arab shareholders, and its representative to the Union must be of Arab nationality

Conditions for active membership:

1.To be an Arab institution, company, union, agency, association or enterprise working in the areas provided for in Article (1) of the Statute and involved in:  
1-1 Developing small enterprises and drawing plans for their growth and expansion.
1-2 Providing funds as well as easy-term loans to small enterprises and developing their resources.
1-3 Providing financial services to small enterprises such as credit facilities, venture capital, financial lease, and insurance against credit risks.
 1-4 Offering non-financial services such as information, research, studies, training, productivity and quality systems, marketing, bookkeeping, cost accounting, design, production engineering and other technical and technological assistance components.
2. To be willing to engage in joint Arab activities targeted at exchanging expertise and promoting cooperation in the implementation and funding of joint developmental programs that serve Arab small enterprises.
3. To adhere to the Union’s Statute and Rules and Regulations approved by the Union’s Board of Directors.

Associate membership:

Associate membership of the Union is open to:

•  Arab small enterprises.

• Non-governmental organizations and associations engaged in the field of small enterprise development.

1- To be working or involved in one of the fields and activities of small and micro enterprises.
2- To comply with the Union’s Statute and Rules and Regulations approved by the Board of Directors.
3- To pay membership dues and fees.

Applying for membership:

Requests for membership must be submitted in writing to the Board of Directors and addressed to the Union’s General Secretariat at the head office of the Social Fund for Development.

Observer membership:  

Are observer members:
1. The League of Arab States.
2. The Council of Arab Economic Unity.
3. The Arab Labor Organization.
4.  The Union of Arab Banks.
5.  The Arab Organization for Industrial Development and Mining.
6.  Any other Arab, regional or international organization approved by the    General Assembly and the Board of Directors.

With the exception of observer members, the applicant seeking to become member of the Union shall send in to the Board of Directors a request in writing, which shall provide that the applicant undertakes to comply with Union’s Statute and pay membership fees and dues. The documents attesting to the eligibility of the applicant shall be attached to its request, which will be enlisted in a special registry. The request for membership is submitted to the Board of Directors to decide on it in its first meeting as from the date of its submittal, within a period not exceeding one (1) year following that date. If this period expired without deciding upon such request, acceptance into membership is deemed effective.

Organs

The Organs of the Union are: 

1- The General Assembly:

2- The Board of Directors:

3- The General Secretariat:

The General Secretariat consists of the Secretary General and two deputies assisted by a number of staff in conformity with the Union’s organizational structure.

For more information, please contact:
120 Mohi El Din Abu El Ezz – Giza _Egypt
Tel.: 00202 363547 – 3363578 – 3361941 – 3361941 – 3361946
Direct: 00202 3322287
Fax: (02) 3361347
E-mail: ause@sfdegypt.org

The Arab Union for Small Enterprises

Basic Data

i-Date of Establishment: the Union was established in 2004 /and joined the specialized Arab unions working under the Council of Arab Economic Unity pursuant to the Council’s Decree No. 1259d/80 in 1/12/2004.
ii-Headquarters: Cairo – Arab Republic of Egypt.
iii-Postal Address: P.O. box: 11714
iv- Address: Social Fund for Development, 1 Hussein Hegazy St., off Kasr El Eini St., Cairo.
v-E-mail: ause@sfdegypt.org
vi-Fax: (202) 7961660/7950628
vii-Telephone: (202) 7961755 - 7940077
direct number: 3669119.
viii-President: Mr. Mohamed Hany Seif El Nasr
Nationality: Egyptian
ix-Secretary General: Mr. Bahaa El Din Hussein Farweez.
Nationality: Egyptian
x-Assistant Secretary General: Dr. Ezzat Diaa El Din
Nationality: Egyptian

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