Policy Brief: the Role of Micro-Small and Medium Enterprises in Achieving SDGs - 1. Micro-, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and their potential contributions to SDGs - 2. MSMEs’ Growth: Opportunities and Challenges

Micro-, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and their potential contributions to SDGs While there still lacks a universally accepted definition, Micro-, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are widely recognized for the important contributions they make to sustainable development, in terms of contributions to economic growth, creation of decent jobs, provision of public goods and services, as wel. [...] According to a recent research by OECD,1 MSMEs contributed to 53% and 86% of employment in OECD countries such as the UK and Greece in 2017. [...] Nonetheless a joint study of the OECD and the World Bank on inclusive global value chains indicates that growth of MSMEs in developing and Least Developed Countries (LDC) dominate in sectors which are labor- intensive and possess low barriers to entry, including agriculture and agribusiness, manufacturing and service sector. [...] In the short term, the lack of liquidity can leave enterprises unable to pay workers and suppliers or cover overheads and to forward plan and achieve scale in the medium to long run. [...] Many entrepreneurs and MSMEs also struggle to find the support needed to strengthen their business management, marketing, record and bookkeeping, strategic and financial planning, to be able to grow, formalize their business operations, capture market share and also cope with shocks.