Sme Policy Index Western Balkans And Turkey 2012 Progress In The Implementation Of The Small Business Act For Europe

This book provides a comparative overview across the region for SME policy development.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are an important driver for job creation and economic growth in the Western Balkans and Turkey. However, the global financial crisis and the subsequent sovereign debt crisis in the euro zone has hit SMEs in the region hard, restricting bank lending, eroding consumer demand, foreign direct investment, remittances and international capital inflows. To support SME development and stimulate growth, governments from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey are undertaking extensive reforms to enhance productivity, human capital and company-level performance. This report gives policymakers a framework to assess national SME policies. The report helps identify strengths and weaknesses in policy design and implementation, compare experiences and performance, set priorities and measure convergence towards implementation of the policy principles promoted by the small business act for Europe. It also benchmarks the region's progress against a similar assessments carried out in 2006 and 2009 and, for the first time, includes Turkey.

The SME Policy Index is a benchmarking tool designed for emerging economies to assess SME policy frameworks and monitor progress in policy implementation over time.

Robust SME sectors are critical to the prosperity of the six Western Balkan economies and Turkey, accounting for over 70% of those employed in the business sector and generating 65% of value added in these seven economies. Yet their potential remains untapped, as SMEs across the region grapple ...

The development of a dynamic and vibrant SME sector is of paramount importance for the seven EU pre-accession economies: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Turkey. The region's productive structure is predominately composed of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which on average contribute to 75% of total employment and over 60% of total private-sector value added. Nevertheless, important challenges remain to transform the SME sector into a driver of economic growth and employment and to address persistent structural challenges such as high unemployment rates and the per capita income gap. However some of the conditions to leverage growth are already in place. First, the economies of the Western Balkans and Turkey (WBT) are covered by the current EU enlargement agenda. The EU's enlargement policy deals with the countries currently aspiring to become members of the European Union.^The EU's enlargement policy is an investment in peace, security and stability in Europe. It provides increased economic and trade opportunities to the mutual benefit of the EU and the aspiring member states. Second, SMEs in the Western Balkans and Turkey face a unique set of opportunities for business expansion. The region has made considerable progress on economic integration with the European Union, whose single market is the largest in the world, serving 500 million citizens and generating 23% of world GDP. The implementation of the Central European Free- Trade Area (CEFTA), a regional free-trade agreement comprising all the Western Balkan economies and the Republic of Moldova, and a network of free trade agreements between Turkey and the Western Balkans, have further expanded market access.^Third, the Western Balkans are advancing their transition to a market-based economic system, in particular with regard to liberalising and opening up their economies, while Turkey's economic reforms have contributed to deregulating and expanding its internal market. SME policy simultaneously targets changes in the economic structure and improvements in the business climate in general and enterprise growth potential in particular. The SME Policy Index assesses progress in implementing the ten principles of the Small Business Act for Europe (SBA) and compares the evolution in policy and remaining challenges across the region while providing guidelines for reform for each economy. This SME Policy Index, the fourth since 2007, sheds light on SME policy development over the past decade.

The SME Policy Index is a benchmarking tool designed for emerging economies to assess SME policy frameworks and monitor progress in policy implementation over time. The Index has been developed by the OECD in partnership with the European Commission, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and the European Training Foundation (ETF) in 2006. For the Eastern Partner Countries, the assessment framework is structured around the ten principles of the Small Business Act for Europe (SBA), providing a wide-range of pro-enterprise measures to guide the design and implementation of SME policies based on good practices promoted by the EU and the OECD. It is applied to the Eastern Partner Countries for the second time since 2012. The Index identifies strengths and weaknesses in policy design and implementation, allows for comparison across countries and measures convergence towards good practices and relevant policy standards. It aims to support governments in setting targets for SME policy development and to identify strategic priorities to further improve the business environment. It also helps to engage governments in policy dialogue and exchange good practices within the region and with OECD and EU members.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are essential drivers of sustainable economic growth in the Western Balkans and Turkey, where they make up 99% of all firms, generate 65% value added and account for 75% of employment. Nevertheless, SMEs across the region continue to face obstacles such as difficulties accessing financing, low levels of digital uptake, regulatory barriers and relatively low participation in international trade.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are essential drivers of sustainable economic growth in the Western Balkans and Turkey, where they make up 99% of all firms, generate 65% value added and account for 75% of employment. Nevertheless, SMEs across the region continue to face obstacles such as difficulties accessing financing, low levels of digital uptake, regulatory barriers and relatively low participation in international trade. The situation has been further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic: SMEs found themselves fighting for survival amidst reduced demand, lockdowns and travel restrictions, and supply chain disruptions. This report provides an overview of the implementation of the Small Business Act for Europe during the period 2019-22. It is designed to help policy makers design, implement and monitor policies to support the recovery of SMEs from the pandemic, boost their competitiveness based on OECD and EU good practices, and further enhance the region's economic growth and resilience.