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SME can help resolve unemployment

Say experts, call for support to flourish the sector

Unb, Dhaka
Amid growing unemployment problem in the country, experts have said Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) sector can be an effective tool to resolve the problem if it gets necessary support to flourish.
They said there is no alternative to putting emphasis on SME sector and creating skilled manpower through technology-based education.
A large number of educated youths are now unemployed. The current rate of unemployment will rise further and the government should think about more employment generation, they said.
According to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), country's unemployment rate increased to 4.37 percent in December 2017 from 4.35 percent in 2016.
According to a report of the Planning Division titled "Study on Future Direction of SME in Bangladesh”, SMEs now occupy an important position in the national economy.
They account for about 45 percent of
manufacturing value addition, about 80 percent of industrial employment, about 90 percent of total industrial units and about 25 percent of the labour force. Their total contribution to export earnings varies from 75 percent to 80 percent.
Every year, about 2 million young people join the country's workforce. Only half of them find jobs at home or abroad. So, it has become a challenge to create more jobs.
Dr Mohammad Mahfuz Kabir, research director of Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies, said SME sector would undoubtedly play an important role in reducing unemployment.
"We're moving towards technologybased industry. Thousands of workers will lose their jobs for the 4th industrial revolution. It's time to think about SME. Or else, where will unemployed people go?"
"In many developed countries, SME sector is playing a significant role in the economy. We need to carry out extensive research and take necessary plans in this regard," he stressed.
Bangladesh Bank Governor Fazle Kabir said the sector can contribute to the country's journey towards achieving double-digit GDP growth.
He said, "We're providing policy support to encourage small and medium entrepreneurs. Training programmes should be arranged to create skilled entrepreneurs."
"There's a good future for SME entrepreneurs. Banks have been instructed to provide loans to SME industries. Entrepreneurs can get loans with special facilities from Entrepreneurship Support Fund," the central bank governor said.
Md Mostaqaue Hassan, chairperson of Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation, said they have taken initiatives to promote the sector.
"Now, our main focus is to build SME industrial parks. We've already visited places beside the Padma river, especially Shariatpur-Madaripur and Munshiganj areas, to set up two BSCIC industrial parks," he added.
He said they need more support from the government to develop the sector. "We'll build industrial parks on around 20,000 acres of land in the next 10 years and create one crore employments.”
Contacted, Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun said his ministry is organising fairs to promote the sector so foreign investors could be aware that there is a good atmosphere to invest in Bangladesh. "We're also inspiring entrepreneurs at district level," he said.
He said the ministry has taken initiatives to build sustainable and environment-friendly industries.
The total number of SMEs in Bangladesh is estimated to be 7,900,000. Of them, 93.6 percent are small and 6.4 percent are medium. The 2003 Private Sector Survey estimated that there are about 6 million micro, small and medium enterprises, with fewer than 100 employees each. About 60-65 percent of all SMEs are located outside metropolitan areas of Dhaka and Chattogram.