USAID celebrates World Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Day

Islamabad: United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on Thursday celebrated the World Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Day through an event held in Islamabad.

The event’s focus was to recognize the vital role small and medium enterprises play not only in the Pakistan’s economy, but in economies around the world. Globally, small and medium enterprises constitute about 90 percent of the entire business sector, and they generate livelihoods for more than 50 percent of the workforce. They also foster innovation and creativity through their business ideas and initiatives.

While talking at the event, Deputy Mission Director USAID Pakistan David Young mentioned that USAID’s Small and Medium Enterprise Activity (SMEA) is a dedicated effort to support small and medium enterprise-led growth in Pakistan. In the last five years, SMEA has awarded innovation and scale-up grants, implemented business development activities, and increased access to market and technical training for Pakistani small and medium enterprises. The activity has yielded impressive results, creating more than thirty-seven thousand new job opportunities.

Another of SMEA’s important achievements is its support for women-led business, which constitutes more than 30 percent of the total beneficiaries under the activity.

The Additional Secretary of Ministry of Industries and Production, Govt of Pakistan, Mr. Iftikhar Ali Sahoo commended the contribution of USAID in strengthening the MSMEs in Pakistan. He expressed his views saying that SMEs play a pivotal role in the high-income sector. The Government of Pakistan’s SME policy is comprehensive, conducive, and user-friendly.