SMEs and Our Development Goals

Abstract

Significance of SMEs can be clearly observed if we take a look at the contribution of SMEs in some select Asian countries. For example, about 97.3 percent of enterprises in China, 97.3 percent in Malaysia, 97.5 percent in Kazakhstan, and 97.7 percent in Vietnam are SMEs. Furthermore, about 99.4 percent of enterprises in Singapore, 99.5 percent in Sri Lanka, 99.6 percent in the Philippines, 99.7 percent in Thailand, 99.7 percent in Japan, and finally, 99.9 percent in the Republic of Korea are SMEs. SMEs also play a vital role in employment in these countries. For example, SMEs make up 87.7 percent of employment by enterprise in the Republic of Korea, 80.3 percent in Thailand, and 71.8 percent in Cambodia. Similarly, SMEs are contributing to GDP growth and increasing export earnings of these countries. They generate 60 percent of GDP in Indonesia and China, 47.6 percent in the Republic of Korea, 45 percent in Singapore, and 43.7 percent in Japan.