OREANDA-NEWS  The entry of businesses and startups of Russian origin into the market of MENA countries is burdened with local specifics of doing business and some other problems. However, entrepreneurs of the Russian Federation, when entering the market, can take advantage of the orientation of some of these countries towards technological development and the course for the introduction of AI, experts interviewed by TASS told.

The MENA countries are commonly referred to as the states of the Middle East and Africa. This number includes North African countries, countries of the Arabian Peninsula, such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Iran, Syria, Israel and Egypt are also considered countries of this group.

Ekaterina Petrova, director of the GenerationS corporate innovation platform, told TASS that many people are trying to "enter" the MENA countries, offering a product adapted for these markets. But the peculiarities of doing business in these countries can make it difficult to get there - for example, the need to have a local partner to establish connections, as well as the peculiarity of local players - contributions to companies with the most understandable structure.

Anton Melnikov, Development Director of Aimed, which entered the market of one of the MENA countries - the UAE, pointed out local specifics, business etiquette and other factors as the main difficulty of doing business. He agreed that investments in general are directed to large, successful projects, and this is also a local nuance. However, he still believes that the UAE acts as a bridge between Russia and other countries. "In this context, the Emirates is a good location for business to scale further, especially in conditions of restrictions and sanctions. The markets of Western, eastern countries, Africa are now very attractive for Russian companies," the expert believes.