About us
Shababeek means windows
A window is not a door. It does not simply let you through — it lets you see, understand, and decide before you move. That distinction is the whole idea.
The idea
Knowledge, connection, opportunity, growth
Shababeek — شبابيك — is the Arabic plural of window. We chose it because it describes exactly what an international entrepreneur, professional or organisation needs when they approach a new market: not a promise, but a view.
A window onto how the ecosystem works. Onto who the people are. Onto what is genuinely possible and what is not.
We sit at the intersection of training, business development, international programmes and ecosystem navigation, because in practice those four things are inseparable. Knowledge without networks stalls. Networks without knowledge waste everyone's time. We connect the two, and then we stay until something happens.
How we work
Six things we hold to
-
Honest before helpful
If we are not the right partner for what you need, we say so in the first conversation. It costs us work and saves you months.
-
Practitioners only
Everyone who trains for us has run the thing they teach. No borrowed authority.
-
Cross-cultural by default
Arabic, Dutch and English are working languages, not accommodations. Cultural fluency is the product, not the packaging.
-
Clear about our limits
We are not a legal, tax or immigration firm. Where you need a regulated specialist we introduce you to one and step back.
-
Relationships over transactions
Our introductions carry weight because we maintain the relationships behind them. That takes years and we treat it as an asset.
-
Designed, not templated
Every programme starts with a blank page and your actual situation.
Our team
The people in the room
Everyone who teaches for us has done the thing they are teaching.
-
Amira Haddad
Amira has founded two companies in the UAE and advised more than forty early-stage teams on business model…
-
Joris van Dijk
Twenty years in Dutch corporate and public-sector partnerships, most recently building international programmes for a regional development agency.…
-
Sanne de Vries
Sanne works on the investment side and has sat on both sides of the table with international founders…
-
Youssef Benali
Youssef has spent a decade inside European innovation clusters and now advises institutions on how to build them.…
How It Works
Four steps, every time
The same method whether we are training six entrepreneurs or designing a two-week programme for a visiting university delegation.
01
Understand
We start with your ambitions and context — what you are trying to achieve, what you already know, and what is genuinely in the way.
02
Design
We develop the right training, programme or business pathway. Nothing is pulled off a shelf.
03
Connect
We connect you with knowledge, experts, companies and networks — and stay in the room while it happens.
04
Grow
Knowledge and connections become opportunities: a partner, a market, a first customer, a stronger team.
Ready to Open Your Next Window?
Whether you are building a business, developing talent, entering a new market, or designing an international programme, let us explore what Shababeek can make possible.