Half of UAE SMEs and a third of Saudi ones have been forced to reduce employee headcounts amid the pandemic.
A new report on the state of small businesses around the globe from Facebook, the World Bank and the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), found that 50 per cent of UAE SMEs, as well as 35 per cent of Saudi and 51 per cent of Egyptian ones, have been forced to reduce staff numbers. Along with this, the report also highlighted that 81 per cent of UAE firms and 64 per cent of Saudi firms reported lower sales than last year.
Despite these negative numbers, many of the regional SMEs have reported about being optimistic for the future. According to the report, 61 per cent of SMEs in the UAE and 59 per cent in Saudi Arabia reported being optimistic about their business prospects after the Covid-19 pandemic subsides.
