Business Desk :
Contribution of the SME sector to the national economy of Bangladesh is more than 25% and it also employs more than 8 million people, experts say
The small and medium enterprise (SME) sector needs policy support and Tk20,000 crore more to recover from losses and other effects of Covid-19, say experts.
They made this recommendation during the publication of a report and discussion program titled “The Future of SMEs after the Corona Crisis: Challenges and Opportunities,” organized by the SME Foundation and FES Bangladesh.
Dr Atiur Rahman, former governor of Bangladesh Bank and Bangabandhu Chair Professor at Dhaka University, presented the report.
Rahman said the contribution of the SME sector to the national economy of Bangladesh is more than 25% and it also employs more than 8 million people.
“The SME Policy 2019 is an effective initiative for development of the infrastructure and clusters of this sector. Moreover, the policy has also kept an eye on the market connectivity of SME products,” he added.
He also said that due to the coronavirus pandemic, the revenue of SMEs has decreased by 66% and 76% of the products have remained unsold.
“42% workers of this sector have received partial salaries, whereas 4% of the workers have not received any salary,” Rahman added.
To offset these losses, he suggested allocating at least Tk20,000 crore more for the sector.
He also said that most of the funds of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are going to the developed countries, and called for allocating funds for development of the SME sector in developing countries including Bangladesh through the World Bank and Asian Development Bank.
Contribution of the SME sector to the national economy of Bangladesh is more than 25% and it also employs more than 8 million people, experts say
The small and medium enterprise (SME) sector needs policy support and Tk20,000 crore more to recover from losses and other effects of Covid-19, say experts.
They made this recommendation during the publication of a report and discussion program titled “The Future of SMEs after the Corona Crisis: Challenges and Opportunities,” organized by the SME Foundation and FES Bangladesh.
Dr Atiur Rahman, former governor of Bangladesh Bank and Bangabandhu Chair Professor at Dhaka University, presented the report.
Rahman said the contribution of the SME sector to the national economy of Bangladesh is more than 25% and it also employs more than 8 million people.
“The SME Policy 2019 is an effective initiative for development of the infrastructure and clusters of this sector. Moreover, the policy has also kept an eye on the market connectivity of SME products,” he added.
He also said that due to the coronavirus pandemic, the revenue of SMEs has decreased by 66% and 76% of the products have remained unsold.
“42% workers of this sector have received partial salaries, whereas 4% of the workers have not received any salary,” Rahman added.
To offset these losses, he suggested allocating at least Tk20,000 crore more for the sector.
He also said that most of the funds of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are going to the developed countries, and called for allocating funds for development of the SME sector in developing countries including Bangladesh through the World Bank and Asian Development Bank.
