Towards Global Economy: Fostering SMEs is the Best Option for Sustainable Development

An entrepreneur in general and a small scale industrialist in particular is used to read the fine print, for the headlines often lead you away from the truth. For example, we see advertisements screaming 50% off on say, polymer products but the small fine print tucked away in a corner marked by an ubiquitous asterisk, reveals the 'truth' viz. 'applicable only on bulk orders on select brands whose MRP is in the highest price bandwidth'.

Now, here is a real demonstrative example. Global wealth has almost doubled since 1990, makes for breaking news. But read the fine print, viz. nearly half the World's population manage to survive on less than 2 US dollars per day. That is a billion people make both ends meet in a day in the sum it takes another billion to just commute in a day!

So Poverty is not just an unreal slogan but too real, too scary and truly detrimental to sustainable development, environmental security, global stability and a genuinely global market. But how can we make economic growth inclusive? It's not rocket science, and we have known the answer for so long, though we keep coming back to this question again and again. The key to root out poverty is improving the performance and sustainability of local entrepreneurs and SMEs, who represent the backbone of global economic activity.

This paper attempts to explain how governments can help alleviate poverty by focusing on SMEs and how larger corporations can also collaborate and help themselves by including SMEs in their value chains. It describes some of the comparative advantages of SMEs and the challenges they face in developing countries. “Wealth creation, one of the core competencies of the private sector, is a vital part of the poverty alleviation process”.

In OECD economies SMEs and micro enterprises account for over 95% of firms, 60-70% of employment, 55% of GDP and a lion's share of new jobs. In developing countries, more than 90% of all firms outside the agricultural sector are SMEs and micro enterprises3, generating a significant portion of GDP. For example, in India, this vibrant sector of the economy has been contributing over 39% of the manufacturing sector output, 33% of the national exports and providing employment to nearly 312 lakh people through 128 lakh units, located in both rural and urban areas across the country.

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Our Achievements

• Winner of appreciation award for promoting SMEs in India.
• 1st ever Indian magazine to penetrate tier II, III cities & the rural belt.
• Industry Partnerships include CII, FICCI, ASSOCHAM, PHDCC, AIMA, ITPO, SME Network, Federation of Indian Micro Small Enterprises (FISME)
• Official Magazine Partners for several national & international MSME events.

The Last Word

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