Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun said the SME database would be updated soon to ensure the benefits of the incentive package announced by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to protect the country's Cottage, Micro, Small & Medium Enterprise (CMSME) affected by the coronavirus.
He said this while addressing a virtual dialogue titled "Covid-19 Economic Crisis and SME Industry of Bangladesh" on Tuesday.
‘Resurgent Bangladesh’, a joint venture of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE), BUILD and Policy Exchange, has organised this dialogue.
In the dialogue, the speakers said that even though the incentive package was announced very quickly, the SME entrepreneurs are not getting the benefits due to the complexity in channeling funds through banks. In addition, there is no opportunity to avail the announced packages for a large number of industrial and business ventures in the informal sector due to complications in banking channel.
They demanded government-announced incentives for the grassroots informal, cottage, small-scale industries and businesses through the banking channel as well as the non-banking channel, including the Micro-Financing Institute (MFI).
The industries minister said monitoring activities have already been launched at the district level to ensure the benefits of incentives announced by the Prime Minister for the hard-hit SME entrepreneurs at the grassroots level. A verification and selection committee has been formed under the leadership of the deputy commissioner to identify the real victims and this committee has started its work.
He said the SME Foundation and the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics would update the database with the help of the industry ministry. As a result, the really-affected cottage, small and medium enterprise entrepreneurs will get the benefit of incentives.
He added that the government has taken practical steps to keep economic activities and industries afloat to keep life and livelihood moving even in the coronavirus situation. Apart from this, efforts are being made to involve the returning manpower in the productive SME sector.
