Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day is observed every year on June 27.
Since 2017, Micro-, small and Medium-sized businesses celebrate their day in recognition of their work in local and global economies. These enterprises, which generally employ fewer than 250 people, are the backbone of most economies worldwide and play a key role in developing countries. This is not only the case in developing nations, but also developed nations, wherein small and medium enterprises tend to contribute greatly to the economy of the nation.
The day aims to raise awareness about how important they are as well as providing resources that will help these smaller enterprises to succeed. From availing funding and human resources, to looking for expert accountant brampton, for instance, there are a lot of aspects that a small business owner needs to consider. To elaborate further, let us take the example of marketing. Many small enterprises struggle with marketing so many will receive free resources showing them how they can better spend their advertising money and how solutions like this one here will help them achieve efficient and effective communication with their customers. In another instance, if a small business is already doing well without having a social media presence, you can imagine what an Instagram account can do for their sales. Naturally, first, they would need to create an account and gather a significant following there, which they can do by buying organic Instagram followers with the help of a social media growth company. But after that, they are more than likely to witness and growth in their customer base and their sales as well. In some cases, small businesses might already be struggling and they cannot afford to face additional challenges like losing an employee of importance. It might be preferable if these small businesses took all appropriate precautions. For example, businesses might procure key man disability insurance, which tends to provide the financial benefits needed to keep the business running and making profits during the absence of a key person due to disability.
According to the data provided by the International Council for Small Business (ICSB), formal and informal Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) make up over 90% of all firms and account on average for 60-70% of total employment and 50% of GDP.
The General Assembly, recognizing the importance of these enterprises, decided to declare 27 June the Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day to raise public awareness of their contribution to sustainable development.
Background
The General Assembly, recognizing the need to improve small business access to microfinance and credit, decided to designate 27 June as Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day through a resolution. It was introduced by the delegation of Argentina, co-sponsored by 54 member states and adopted without a vote by the 193-member General Assembly on 6 April 2017.
What is a micro-, small, or medium-sized enterprise?
The criteria for defining the size of a business differ from country to country. As a reference, the European Commission’s definition of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises is established according to the number of employees and the annual turnover or balance sheet:
- micro-enterprise: fewer than 10 employees and an annual turnover (the amount of money taken in a particular period) or balance sheet (a statement of a company’s assets and liabilities) below €2 million.
- small enterprise: fewer than 50 employees and an annual turnover or balance sheet below €10 million.
- medium-sized enterprise: fewer than 250 employees and annual turnover below €50 million or balance sheet below €43 million.
The choice of MSME definition could depend on many factors, such as business culture, the size of the country’s population, industry and the level of international economic integration.
