Friday, July 01, 2005
From the Local to the Global Market: The Challenges for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises
By: Sarath Rajapatirana
For The Enterprise Research Institute, 1997
This paper discusses the phenomenon of greater participation of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in world trade and production, what they are and what they do, the opportunities for SMEs for greater participation in world trade, and the constraints that these enterprises face to making use of the new opportunities. It examines the analytical issues arising from the experiences of different countries and reaches conclusions. The main conclusion is that removing constraints to SME development through general policy reforms will allow better opportunities for participation in global trade and production. The paper is divided into six sections. Following the introduction, Section II describes what SMEs are, what they do and why policy makers should worry about them. Section III analyzes the opportunities that SMEs face to increase their participation in the global market. Section IV examines the constraints they face in entering the global market; Section V analyzes ways to address constraints on SMEs-how and by whom; and Section VI gives the conclusions.
For The Enterprise Research Institute, 1997
This paper discusses the phenomenon of greater participation of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in world trade and production, what they are and what they do, the opportunities for SMEs for greater participation in world trade, and the constraints that these enterprises face to making use of the new opportunities. It examines the analytical issues arising from the experiences of different countries and reaches conclusions. The main conclusion is that removing constraints to SME development through general policy reforms will allow better opportunities for participation in global trade and production. The paper is divided into six sections. Following the introduction, Section II describes what SMEs are, what they do and why policy makers should worry about them. Section III analyzes the opportunities that SMEs face to increase their participation in the global market. Section IV examines the constraints they face in entering the global market; Section V analyzes ways to address constraints on SMEs-how and by whom; and Section VI gives the conclusions.