International Summit on MSME organised by Ministry of MSME, GoI and EDII

Mega International Summit on MSMEs’ Competitiveness and Growth, organised by Ministry of MSME, GoI and Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India, Ahmedabad

Union Minister for MSME, Shri Narayan Rane, inaugurated the two-day Mega International Summit on MSME Competitiveness and Growth organized by the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) and Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) in the august presence of Shri Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma, Minister of State (MoS), MSME, as Guest of Honour. The two-day summit witnessed brainstorming sessions and panel discussions on the enhancements, challenges and growth opportunities in the MSME sector. Speakers and experts from India, Singapore, Peru, Lao PDR, Rwanda, Myanmar, Russia, Uzbekistan, Spain and Iran, shared their experiences at the summit. The summit was attended by entrepreneurs, academicians, policymakers, industry leaders, thought leaders, business chambers, industry associations, startups, social impact organizations, MSMEs and self-help groups from across the world. During the summit, experts deliberated on subjects such as challenges and opportunities in the MSME sector amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, incubation/acceleration in MSME growth, role of conducive policies and non-financial business development services in MSME competitiveness, and how MSMEs can work in consortia to achieve sustainability. Discussions revolved around MSMEs' competitiveness, internationalization of Indian MSMEs, technology and innovation, digital transformation of MSMEs, entrepreneurship ecosystem and emerging opportunities in the MSME sector, and gender and disadvantaged communities' entrepreneurship.

Some of the national and international speakers included

· Dr. Gholamhossein Hosseininia, Deputy Minister of Cooperative, Labour & Social Welfare and President of Iran Technical and Vocational Training Organization (TVTO), Tehran, Iran (Topic- Innovation and Technology in MSMEs: Iran Experiences);

· Ms. Alka Arora, IAS (JS-ARI) Ministry of MSME, Govt. of India (Topic- MSME Challenges and Opportunities in the era of COVID 19 Pandemic & the Role of Incubation/Acceleration in MSMEs Growth);

· Ms. Alina Doskanova, Deputy Director- General of Skills Development Agency, Moscow, Russia (Topic- Startup Team Building and Growing through Skills Development Programmes);

· Commodore Amit Rastogi, Chairman & Managing Director of National Research Development Corporation, New Delhi (Topic- How MSMEs can Work in Consortia to Achieve Sustainability);

· Mr. Aruro Coral Alamo, CEO at Future Startup Hero, Lima, PERU (Topic- Opportunities emerging in Peru for Indian MSMEs);

· Dr. K. Rangarajan, Prof., Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, Kolkata (Topic- People, Planet and Profit in the Light of MSME Sector Development);

· Ms. Patricia Remiro, Sr. Consultant with ACCIO, The agency for Business Competitiveness in Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain (Topic- Catalonia Clusters: Facing Strategic Change), to name a few.

The Summit, in totality, established the role of MSMEs in the growth and economic development of a country. The factors that were attributed to a well-evolved MSME sector included, emphasis on science & technology, policy making and an understanding of the broad spectrum of MSMEs including high-tech enterprises in the organized sector to several others across industry domains in the informal sector. The Summit brought forth some of the needs and concerns of MSMEs across countries. These were highlighted as the need and access to sustainable infrastructure, consortia approach to business, business development service, finance, technology, training, product diversification, marketing and branding, skilled labour and simplified regulatory mechanism.

Highlighting two of the important sessions:

· Topic : MSME Challenges and Opportunities in the era of COVID 19 Pandemic & the Role of Incubation/Acceleration in MSMEs Growth

Speaker: Ms. Alka Arora, IAS (JS-ARI) Ministry of MSME, Govt. of India

Panelists: Shri S.B Dangayach, Founder Trustee of Innovative Thought Forum, Ahmedabad, Gujarat; Dr. Manish Dewan, Head, Strategic Partnership & Entrepreneurship Development, BIRAC, DBT, Govt. of India and Dr. Poonam Sinha, Director, National Institute of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development and Head Regional Centre of Dehradun (NIESBUD), Noida.

Ms. Alka Arora opined that COVID 19 had created difficult conditions and situations for almost every sector. “On the turf of business, the worst hit were the MSMEs which are not so rich in resource reserve and have, therefore, been noticeably pressured under the consequences of COVID 19. The MSMEs were affected on several fronts; such as raw material supply chain, labour, financial support, markets and exports and many other critical areas of business. Yet there were some entrepreneurs who thought differently and revisited the scalability and the viability of their business models so that appreciable and achievable evaluations and estimations could be reached. The Govt. also rose to the occasion and announced amiable policies. Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan came in as a ray of hope for Indian MSMEs. While supportive policies are being floated, the dream of becoming ‘self-reliant’ through the upliftment of 'local' industries is possible with entrepreneurs thinking innovatively, becoming proactive and planning strategically.”

· People, Planet and Profit in the Light of MSME Sector Development

Speaker: Dr. K. Rangarajan, Prof., Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, Kolkata

Panelists: Mr. Rahul Dev, Senior Journalist and Former Honorary Advisor with Speaker’s Research Initiative, Parliament of India; Mr. Krishan Mishra, Country Head International, Becker Professional Education, India and Mr. Raminder S. Rekhi, Consultant, Non-Farm livelihoods, National Rural Livelihood Mission, MoRD, Govt. of India.

Dr. Rangarajan brought forth the significance of MSMEs to an economy in terms of poverty reduction, job creation, international trade promotion and other critical parameters of growth. He explained how MSMEs have, therefore, been supported and stimulated to develop, expand, and render stronger support to the economy. It so evolved that People, Planet and Profits vis-à-vis MSMEs are important and can be understood as right orientation, sustainable and environment friendly business models which ultimately lead to profit. Entrepreneurs have to be concerned about the environment. Profits are just an outcome of the work they deliver with the right mindset.