This week in Paris, a meeting at the ministerial level of the OECD Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Entrepreneurship Committee took place. It was organized with the goal of discussing the main challenges faced by SMEs during crisis situations and potential solutions for strengthening SME growth during future crises.
In recent years, SMEs and entrepreneurs have been adversely affected by the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and Russian aggression in Ukraine. They have been disproportionately affected by liquidity shortages and supply chain disruptions. In this challenging environment, governments have intensified their support for entrepreneurs, but disruptions in supply chains, fluctuations in energy and food prices, and inflationary pressures persist.
The leader of the Latvian delegation at the meeting was the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Economics, Andris Čuda. As one of the leading experts, he participated in a discussion on facilitating access to financing for SMEs. Access to financing for entrepreneurs is crucial for starting a business, investing, and growing, as well as responding quickly to market shocks.
During the discussion, A.Čuda emphasized that access to financing and digital solutions are some of the most important prerequisites for SMEs to ensure digital transformation and sustainable development, as SMEs and their operations play a significant role in achieving climate policy goals. For this purpose, our SMEs need support. Among other things, policymakers must ensure that SMEs are well informed and have the necessary knowledge and skills to increasingly implement digital solutions in their operations. Additionally, there should be a focus on business incentives, environmental conditions, and financial instruments aimed at achieving important economic indicators, such as employment, wages, export volume, etc.
Throughout the meeting, representatives of 45 OECD member countries discussed strengthening the resilience of SMEs and entrepreneurs against future crises and shocks, inclusive SME and entrepreneurship policy, upgrading and retraining, promoting SME and entrepreneur investments in the green and digital transformation, creating new opportunities for their development, increasing SME participation in the "green" transition, and assisting SMEs and entrepreneurs in navigating the changing global trade and investment environment.
As a result of the discussions, the OECD Ministerial Declaration was adopted, which Latvia also joined, emphasizing the importance of strengthening the resilience of SMEs and entrepreneurs against unexpected global challenges, energy efficiency, and digital skills and capabilities. Representatives of the OECD member states also concluded that governments should continue to provide various financing tools to support SMEs. Furthermore, participants were encouraged to work on ensuring a favorable business environment, reducing administrative barriers for SMEs, and promoting ecosystem development and cooperation within global value chains.
Additional information about the ministerial level meeting of the OECD Small and Medium Enterprises and Entrepreneurship Committee can be found on the meeting's website.