Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

June 27th Marks SMEs Day


Mon 27 Jun 2022 | 10:47 PM
Ahmed Emam

The UN joins the world in the celebration of the Micro-Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Day (SMEs), which is held on June 27th of each year to recognize the vital role of the small startups and small limited firms in enhancing the global economy.

The day aims at raising public awareness of the contribution of MSMEs to global economic growth and sustainable development.

The theme of this year’s Day is “Resilience and Rebuilding”, and is focused on the vital role of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises in a fair and sustainable recovery, according to the UN.

In his address on this day, Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres said: "On this International Day of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises, let us renew our commitment to leverage their full potential, rescue the Sustainable Development Goals, and build a more prosperous and just world for all."

He noted that micro-small and medium-sized enterprises represent nearly 90 percent of global businesses, more than 60 percent of employment, and half of GDP worldwide, saying: "They are the economic lifeblood of communities around the world."

"But they have also been disproportionately impacted by a host of challenges that are disrupting economies -- from climate catastrophe to COVID-19 to the global fallout from the war in Ukraine,"  he pointed out.

"Strengthening small businesses helps fight poverty, create jobs and safeguard livelihoods, particularly for the working poor, women, and youth. We must all do more to support these enterprises in building resilience to external shocks and pursuing sustainable business models, he concluded his message.

The day was founded by the United Nations General Assembly in its 74th Plenary on April 6, 2017. The idea behind the day came after the International Council for Small Business (ICSB) 2016 World Conference Declaration on the urgent need to recognize MSME’s role in global development.

It's worth mentioning that the overall contribution of the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to Egypt's gross domestic product (GDP) has reached 25% in 2022.