SMEs should get more attention: experts
29 January, 2018
The government should take measures for the development of the small- and medium-sized enterprises to help Bangladesh become a middle-income country, said speakers at an event yesterday.
SMEs are playing a major role in generating employment so the government will have to give attention to the sector, said Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, chairman of the National Board of Revenue.
Bhuiyan's comment came at the launch of a book -- Selected Reading on the Strategies for Inclusive Development in Bangladesh -- by Momtaz Uddin Ahmed, a professor of economics of Dhaka University, at the university's Lecture Theatre building.
The book is a compilation of selected short essays on important development policy issues for Bangladesh, Ahmed said.
“Government jobs are no more attractive to people and SMEs have had a say in that,” Bhuiyan said.
The garment sector is leading the country's exports but most of the companies are medium-sized.
The economy is growing but inequality is emerging as a big challenge, said Hossain Zillur Rahman, executive chairman of Power and Participation Research Centre.
The SMEs are driving the economy but they are not getting adequate policy support from the government.
“Bangladesh could not uphold its competitiveness on the global platform properly,” he said, adding that cheap labour should no longer be the only selling point in the global market.
The government should address the challenges of SMEs by conducting an insightful analysis, said Mustafizur Rahman, distinguished fellow of the Centre for Policy Dialogue.
While setting up special economic zones is a good initiative of the government, the SMEs do not have access there, said Selim Raihan, a professor of economics at Dhaka University.
The economic zones will not yield the desired results if their door is not opened to the SMEs.
Raihan also said the employment of female workers in the garment sector has declined drastically in recent times, which will have a negative impact on inclusive development.
“The government should identify the causes behind the declining trend,” he added.
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