Bahrain labour fund Tamkeen said its Enterprise Development Support Programme has seen significant growth exceeding its target over the period from February to the end of September this year.

The flagship programme, which seeks to foster efficiency and sustainability of Bahrain-based enterprises, comes as part of Tamkeen's efforts to deliver accessible business support services to the private sector.

Tamkeen announced earlier this year that it had set a target to serve an additional 2,500 business owners through the next phase of the programme with a budget of around BD51 million ($133 million) allocated to the programme during that span.

The programme's initial target was to provide support to around 850 business enterprises in a year.

However, the surge in demand for the programme has spurred the figure to more than 1,500 enterprises following enterprise development enhancements.

Enterprise Development Support Agency staff, run by KPMG Fakhro, have increased three-fold to cater to increasing demand for the programme, complimented with a dedicated call centre line inaugurated earlier this year.

Since February around 4,449 enterprises attended orientation sessions organised daily at the Enterprise Development Support Agency premises in the Seef district.

"The success of the programme reflects Tamkeen's efforts to extend support to Bahrain's private sector organisations and a reinforcement of its position as a key driver of economic development," said private sector support senior manager Mohammed Bucheery.

"The schemes support private sector Bahraini enterprises to enhance their efficiency and competitiveness and raise standards of their corporate performance," he added.-TradeArabia News Service