Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Qatar are gaining access to enterprise-grade logistics without owning any of the underlying infrastructure themselves, through a shared-service model addressing three interlinked barriers that have long held smaller businesses back.This is according to Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman al-Thani, co-founder and CEO of WareOne, a Qatar-based logistics platform that told Gulf Times how it is addressing these challenges for local SMEs.He said logistics is usually sold in large, fixed blocks, such as an entire warehouse, a full fleet of trucks or a 12-month lease, terms better suited to large companies than to brands processing a few hundred orders a month. Sheikh Khalifa noted that logistics services are often fragmented across multiple providers, with one company handling storage, another transport, a third customs clearance, and a fourth delivery, leaving business owners to absorb the blame when something goes wrong between them. “When something goes wrong between them, nobody takes responsibility. The owner does,” Sheikh Khalifa explained, further pointing out that running such an operation also demands expertise that most small teams simply do not have. WareOne addresses this by operating its own fulfilment centre for complex e-commerce work, supported by a network of partners handling storage, freight and delivery across Qatar and the GCC, Sheikh Khalifa noted. Customers get a single contract, one view of their operation and one accountable WareOne team, he also said, adding that businesses simply connect their Shopify store or marketplace account, select a delivery promise, and pay by the cubic metre, by the order or by the delivery. This, he said, allows businesses to focus on what they sell and how they grow, while WareOne manages the logistics behind it. Asked how WareOne measures its impact on SME competitiveness beyond cost savings, Sheikh Khalifa said cost remains significant and is the main reason most businesses approach the company, though he stressed it is not the only measure of success. He said WareOne instead tracks on-time delivery and order accuracy, the number of sales channels and markets a business operates in without needing to hire extra staff, and whether the business survives its busiest season, typically when small companies falter. “The best sign of our work is not what a customer saves. It is what they try next,” Sheikh Khalifa pointed out. Sheikh Khalifa cited an unnamed Qatari brand that grew more than four times within a few months after moving its operations onto WareOne’s platform. “They grew...in a very competitive market, without building a logistics team or any infrastructure of their own,” Sheikh Khalifa emphasised.The brand, which sold across several channels simultaneously, needed product-level fulfilment on every channel, consistent delivery promises, multiple payment methods and service standards matching its brand, he said. WareOne brought the operation into its fulfilment centre and connected the brand’s orders, inventory and deliveries through a single system, according to Sheikh Khalifa. “Logistics should help a good business grow. It should not hold it back,” he added.

Qatar has participated in the 41st meeting of the Directors-General of Passports of the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) States, held at the GCC General Secretariat headquarters in Riyadh. Qatar’s Director-General of Passports Major-General Mohammed Ahmed al-Ateeq al-Dosari led the Ministry of Interior (MoI)’s delegation to the meeting. The meeting discussed multiple topics on its agenda, which included developing passport operations and improving services, enhancing integration and co-ordination among member states, and adopted appropriate recommendations thereon.

Several towns in southeastern Nepal remained under curfew yesterday as the region grappled with ‌lingering tensions after days of ​sectarian violence that erupted ‌on Sunday and left at ‌least ⁠three people ‌dead, authorities said. Twenty-five people ‌were injured in a late-night clash on Sunday ⁠between Hindus and Muslims in Diwanganj, a town in Nepal's Sunsari district bordering India, with officials saying the violence was triggered by a dispute over loud music and religious flags during a Hindu ​event. Two men were shot and killed in Sunsari on Sunday and a third death was reported ‌in neighbouring Siraha ⁠district on Thursday ​as sporadic clashes continued in the ​area. Police spokesperson Abi Narayan Kafle said the incidents were under investigation. There was no violence yesterday, police said, but an indefinite curfew was in place in several towns to prevent any recurrence.Nepal's Gen Z-backed Prime Minister Balendra Shah urged people on Thursday for calm ‌and to remove ‌the "cloud of turbulence" from ⁠the Himalayan nation. "The government will conduct a ⁠fair ⁠and impartial investigation into the violence and punish those responsible for the trouble in a transparent way," Shah said in a rare, televised address to the nation.The country's Home Minister ​Sudan Gurung met the families of the two killed in Sunsari and agreed to provide about $6,660 in relief to each late on Thursday, the government said in a statement.Gurung was also expected to go to Siraha yesterday and meet the family of ‌the third ​person who was killed.