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7th annual Africa Open for Business Summit.

The Summit will showcase stories of significant progress on the SDGs, highlighting the work of the private sector, young entrepreneurs and innovators. The Summit will allow a select group of companies and organizations to partner with and sponsor the Africa: Open for Business Summit, aiming to collaborate on concrete SDG projects and initiatives in Africa.

Watch the 7th annual Africa Open for Business Summit!

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Focus on the impact of MSMEs on economic growth and social justice.

This event brings together global experts to explore "Human-Centered Impact: Advancing the UN SDGs through MSMEs". This hybrid event will discuss the global impact of MSMEs for economic growth and social justice, with a special focus on entrepreneurs, young workers and women in business.

Watch Human-Centered Impact: Advancing the UN SDGs through Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs)!

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Webinar: SMEs as a Key Driver for Climate Adaptation and Innovation in Africa.

The webinar will highlight the pivotal role of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in driving economic growth and fostering innovation across Africa, particularly in the context of increasing climate-related challenges. The focus will be on showcasing how SMEs are becoming pivotal agents of change in climate adaptation and innovation. There will be a specific emphasis on such initiatives as the African Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge (YouthADAPT Challenge). By engaging stakeholders supporting SMEs from across Africa, the scope will also delve into examples of other SMEs contributing to climate resilience efforts across the continent.

Event description

Climate change poses a significant threat to Africa’s development. However, SMEs are emerging as powerful forces for climate adaptation and innovation. Despite their positive impact on Africa’s development, SMEs continue to encounter significant and limiting challenges that hinder their sustainability and potential contributions to the continent’s progress. Consequently, their mortality rate across African nations is alarmingly high, with statistics indicating that five out of seven businesses fail within their first year. For instance, in Uganda, approximately one-third of new company start-ups collapse within their initial year of operations. Similarly, South Africa experiences a wide-ranging failure rate among start-up companies, ranging from 50% to 95%, depending on the industry.   SMEs are crucial to Africa’s economy. They fuel innovation, foster inclusive development, and provide job opportunities across the continent. According to Arya Devi in her 2023 article “SMEs Vital to Fuelling Innovation and Growth in Africa”, in 2023, SMEs made up around 90% of all businesses on the continent, generating roughly 80%of employment and contributing 40% to the continent’s GDP. Additionally, they play a pivotal role in connecting traditional industries with the digital economy by leveraging technology to create adaptable solutions and respond to evolving market conditions.   The rise of technology has become a driving force for change, empowering African SMEs to break through traditional obstacles and unlock their complete capabilities. Thanks to digital platforms, mobile connections, and e-commerce options, SMEs now enjoy unparalleled access to markets, resources, and information. Embracing technology allows these businesses to streamline their processes, boost efficiency, and expand their customer base far beyond local borders. Consequently, SMEs across Africa are increasingly harnessing digital resources to foster innovation. The webinar objectives are the following:

To highlight the significance of small and medium-sized enterprises in contributing to economic growth, climate adaptation, and innovation in Africa.

To emphasize the growing importance of SMEs as key players in addressing climate-related challenges on the African continent.

To showcase such initiatives as the African Youth Adaptation Solutions Challenge as examples of leveraging young entrepreneurs’ creativity for climate resilience.

To examine the potential of SMEs as agents of change in climate adaptation and innovation in Africa.

To explore the role of SMEs in fostering climate resilience and adaptation strategies across various sectors in Africa.

The call to action at the end of the webinar will be to:

Support initiatives that empower young entrepreneurs in the climate adaptation space.

Invest in capacity building for SMEs to develop and implement climate-smart solutions.

Create an enabling environment for SMEs to thrive, fostering innovation and collaboration.

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Abu Dhabi: Assessment of policies, programmes and regulations relating to MSME and start-up development.

Strengthening the performance and economic contribution of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and start-ups is central to Abu Dhabi’s goal of creating a more diversified and competitive economy. This report provides an assessment of policies, programmes and regulations relating to MSME and start-up development in Abu Dhabi. The assessment is structured around six thematic areas: i) access to finance, ii) the availability of skills and capabilities, iii) access to markets, iv) the business environment, v) innovation and digitalisation, and vi) future opportunities for MSME and start-up development. For each thematic area, an analysis of existing issues, challenges and policy approaches is provided, in addition to policy recommendations and relevant examples of international policy practices. The report was prepared by the OECD Secretariat and external experts based on information gathered by the OECD in Abu Dhabi in the form of written documentation, questionnaire responses, stakeholder interviews and roundtable meetings as well as desk research on policy practices in other countries.

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Discussing the role, potential, and challenges of MSMEs in contributing to achieving the SDGs and other internationally agreed-upon commitments.

As we steer our ship into a New Development Course in a Changing World, the importance of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and the circular economy is crystal clear. MSMEs, which account for 90% of businesses, more than 70% of employment, and 50% of GDP worldwide, remain the core of the economy for most societies.

The United Nations General Assembly designated 27 June 2024 as "Micro-, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises Day" (A/RES/71/279) to raise awareness of the tremendous contributions of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Together with MSMEs and entrepreneurs, we can reach the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The workshop, organized by UN Trade and Development, the International Council for Small Business, and other partners, will celebrate the International Day of MSMEs 2024. The sessions will discuss the role, potential, and challenges of MSMEs in contributing to achieving the SDGs and other internationally agreed-upon commitments, with a particular focus on the circular economy.

Participants will include international experts and representatives from all stakeholder groups.

The workshop will be broadcast live.

International celebration of Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day 2024

Watch the United Nations International MSMEs Day: Trade for Climate Change!

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Explore ways in which MSMEs can meaningfully contribute innovative solutions to the challenges of our time.

In its resolution A/RES/71/279, the United Nations General Assembly designated 27 June as "Micro-, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises Day" to raise public awareness of the tremendous contributions of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to sustainable development.

The 2024 MSME Day offers an opportunity to discuss and exchange ideas on how Key stakeholders, including policy makers, large companies, financial institutions, and the international community can support micro-, small and medium-sized businesses to advance the 2030 Agenda and contribute to achieving the SDGs, including poverty eradication and decent work for all. Moreover, the session will explore ways that MSMEs, a sector that represents over 90%of all businesses globally, can meaningfully contribute innovative solutions to the challenges of our time and drive forward inclusive growth and shared prosperity.

Related Sites and Documents

Concept Note    Programme

Watch Leveraging Power and Resilience of Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises to Accelerate SDGs and Eradicate Poverty in Times of Multiple Crises!

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United States: Five Ways to Help Small Businesses Fight Inflation.

Inflation has consistently ranked as one of small businesses’ top concerns since November 2021. This issue significantly impacts every aspect of a small business as owners must absorb higher prices. NFIB recently called on Congress and the White House to take action and help small businesses fight inflation.

In this webinar, the NFIB Research Center Executive Director Holly Wade and Vice President of Federal Government Relations Jeff Brabant will give an economic overview and explain how these five priorities can help ease inflation.

Topics include:

Economic overview

Tax increases

Top five priorities, including making the Small Business Deduction permanent – NFIB’s top advocacy priority

What small business owners can do to raise awareness of these issues to their lawmakers

Can’t make this webinar? Don’t worry! Register Now – we’ll email you an on-demand version!

FREE WEBINAR: Five Ways to Help Small Businesses Fight Inflation Thursday, June 20, 2024, 12:00pm EST

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Bridging the Financing Gap: Unleashing the Potential of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs).

Under this session, two panels will be convened to discuss how to increase SMEs' access to finance in order to unlock their full potential. Panelists include regulators, industry associations, financiers, multinationals, SMEs and technology platform representatives. The objective of the session is to highlight proposed actions that can be taken to unlock the potential of SMEs and strengthen their ability to contribute to the implementation of the SDGs. 

Lead Facilitators:

UNCTAD

International Trade Centre (ITC)

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) make a significant contribution to global trade flows and economic value within countries. SMEs account for over 90 per cent of all business worldwide and are responsible for more than two-thirds of jobs created, including for vulnerable groups such as women and youth. They are the SDG drivers on the ground as they deal with local and regional challenges and are key in promoting innovation and contributing to the greening of industries and the energy transition. Yet access to affordable and timely financing and participation in value chains at global, regional, and domestic level remain a key challenge, hampering their economic and social contribution.  

The outcome of the discussions will be fed into major international events and the Report of the UN Secretary-General on Entrepreneurship for Sustainable Development.

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To maximize the SDG Summit's impact, the Secretary General is convening an SDG Action Weekend, which will generate opportunities for stakeholders, United Nations entities, and Member States to convene inside the United Nations Headquarters and set out specific commitments and contributions to drive SDG transformation between now and 2030.

The SDG Action Weekend will consist of the SDG Mobilization Day on Saturday, 16 September, and the SDG Acceleration Day on Sunday, 17 September at UNHQ in New York.

The SDG Mobilization Day (16 September) will create an opportunity for stakeholders from all sectors to convene inside the United Nations Headquarters and mobilize towards an ambitious SDG Summit and UN General Assembly High-Level Week.

The SDG Acceleration Day (17 September) will be centred around the UN High-Impact Initiatives

The SDG Summit on 18-19 September will mark the mid point of the SDGs. It must secure the breakthroughs and momentum needed to change course and achieve the SDGs by 2030. To maximize the Summit's impact, the Secretary General is convening an SDG Action Weekend, which will generate opportunities for stakeholders, UN entities, and Member States to convene inside the United Nations Headquarters and set out specific commitments and contributions to drive SDG transformation between now and 2030.

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2023 SDG Global Business Forum (HLPF 2023 Special Event).

On the theme of "Turbocharging the 2030 Agenda with Business Impact"

This year's 2023 SDG Global Business Forum, taking place alongside important policy debates at the ministerial segment of the 2023 United Nations High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), will welcome a global community of movers and shakers, problem solvers and innovators to debate these questions, discuss priorities, build alliances and co-create high-impact business solutions to turbocharge the SDGs in the remaining seven years before 2030.

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A platform for small business owners to tell their stories of entrepreneurship and its challenges.

The events provide a platform for small business owners to tell their stories of entrepreneurship and its challenges, while governments, international organizations and business support organizations show their commitment to support.

MSMEs account for over 90% of all businesses and over 50% of jobs worldwide. They are a critical force in realizing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They promote innovation, creativity and decent work for all.

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Policies that strengthen capacities and support MSMEs development and entrepreneurship for women and youth need to be at the forefront.

MSMEs and self-employed workers serve a core function in the development of economies. Globally, they represent about 90 percent of all businesses and account for over two-thirds of employment. If adequately supported, they can effectively contribute to the structural transformation of economies and drive inclusive, sustained, and equitable economic growth and jobs. 

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However, multiple simultaneous shocks and crises have disturbed the global working environment for entrepreneurs and MSMEs. In addition, conflicts, commodity dependence, geopolitical tensions, and pandemics drive social and economic instability, making MSMEs extremely vulnerable to rising inflation and supply chain disruptions. 

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Among the most vulnerable, women- and youth-owned enterprises are often at risk of external shocks. This is when the percentage and overall number of business formations by women and youth are increasing worldwide. However, facing limited access to affordable finance, capacity-building support, partnership networks, and global markets, women and young entrepreneurs need help to overcome the numerous challenges that frequently stifle the growth of their businesses, confining many of them to informality or necessity entrepreneurship. 

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Policies that strengthen capacities and support MSMEs development and entrepreneurship for women and youth need to be at the forefront to address those challenges, lower and remove barriers, and provide an operating environment for women- and youth-owned businesses to grow, thus contributing to the full achievement of SDGs 1, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10 and the “leave no one behind” promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

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This MSMEs day will also focus on supporting resilient supply chains to ensure workers and the environment benefit. Supply chains are a critical component of global trade and commerce, and conflicts, disasters, and pandemics can quickly impact their functioning, increasing costs and making transactions more difficult. 

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In addition, competition and concentration of critical operations in international supply chains can pressure suppliers who are pushed to cut costs to stay in business. Poor working conditions, lack of workers’ representation, unfair wages, unsafe working environments, and reduced attention to environmentally-sound practices generate adverse outcomes. A human-centered approach is needed to help improve these conditions. 

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Practices that result in environmental degradation and compromise working conditions will ultimately affect MSMEs and the communities they serve. Therefore, policymakers and businesses must join forces to ensure economically viable, socially, and environmentally sustainable supply chains. 

Micro-Small and Medium sized Enterprises Day 2023

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Plenary 1: Global Ecosystem to Support MSMEs.

MSME's Day 2023 - Plenary sessions.

Organized by: UNIDO | Live Moderation: UNIDO

10:40 A.M. – 11:25 A.M.

​Moderator: Mr. Ralf Bredel, Director and Representative to the United Nations, UNIDO

Speakers:

H.E. Sithembiso Nyoni, Minister of Women Affairs, Community and Small and Medium Enterprise Development, Zimbabwe

Mr. Racine Sarr, Founder at Shopmeaway,

Mr. Jo Kyoo-il, Mayor, Jinju City, Republic of Korea

Ms. Anne Chappaz, Chief, Institutions and Ecosystems, International Trade Centre

Mr. Joel Nelson, Cargill, Global Leader, External Innovation

Ms. Ibtihel Ben Hadj Mbare, General Manager and Founder of Herbalya

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Plenary 2: Women – Challenges & Opportunities.

MSMEs Day 2023 - Plenary Sessions.

11:25 A.M. – 12:10 P.M.

​Moderator: Mr. Amson Sibanda, Chief, National Strategies and Capacity Building Branch, Division for Sustainable Development Goals, DESA and Ms. Virginia Rose Losada WED Global Coordinator, SME Unit, ILO

Speakers: 

Ms. Lisa Skeete Tatum, Founder and CEO of Landit

Ms. Obianuju Uzo-Ojinnaka, Founder at Traders of Africa

Mr. Sandeep Chachra, CEO of ActionAid India

Mrs. Claudia Mazari Torres, Mayor of Puente de Ixtla, Mexico

Ms. Franziska Giffey, Former Governing Mayor of Berlin

Ms. Suyesha Sthapit, Executive Director; Federation of Woman Entrepreneurs' Associations of Nepal (FWEAN)

Ms. Christine Virtucio, CEO & Founder of Virtucio Designs

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Plenary 3: Role of Youth in Supporting MSMEs Achieve the SDGS | (Youth Representatives).

MSMEs Day 2023 Plenary sessions.

12:10 P.M. – 12:55 P.M.

​Moderator: Mr. Skye Blanks, ICSB COO

​Speakers:

 ITC Pre-Recorded Ecopreneur Video

Mr. Muhammad Sarim Raza, Co-founder at Mawesh E- Mandi

Ms. Francesca Milocco (Project Coordinator of NanoValbruna, Board member of ReGeneration Hub Friuli)

Mr. Stefano Cercelletta (Contest Coordinator of NanoValbruna, Board member of ReGeneration Hub Friuli)

Mrs. Laura Segura, Manager of Innovation and Services of the ArgentineIndustrial Union

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Plenary 4: Supply Chain Issues and Impact on UN SDGS and MSMEs Day.

MSMEs Day 2023 - Plenary sessions

2:00 P.M. – 2:40 P.M.

Moderator: Mr. Winslow Sargeant, Chair ICSB

Speakers: 

ITC Pre-Recorded Ecopreneur Video

Mr. Muhammad Sarim Raza, Co-founder at Mawesh E- Mandi

Ms. Francesca Milocco (Project Coordinator of NanoValbruna, Board member of ReGeneration Hub Friuli)

Mr. Stefano Cercelletta (Contest Coordinator of NanoValbruna, Board member of ReGeneration Hub Friuli)

Mrs. Laura Segura, Manager of Innovation and Services of the Argentine Industrial Union

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Plenary 5: The Voices of Innovation for MSMES – Global Perspectives.

MSMEs DAY 2023: Plenary sessions.

2:40 P.M. – 4:00 P.M.

​Moderator: Ms. Analia Pastran, ICSB Director and Co-Chair of the World Urban Campaign of UN-Habitat.

Speakers: 

H.E. Gloria Guevara, Senior Advisor, Ministry of Tourism of SaudiArabia, Sustainable Tourism Global Center (STGC)

H.E. Orkhan Mammadov (Chairman of the Management Board), The Small and Medium Business Development Agency (SMBDA) of the Republic of Azerbaijan

Ms. Vanessa Perry, The George Washington University School ofBusiness Vice Dean for Strategy

Mr. Kichan Kim, Founder of Humane Entrepreneurship, Professor, Catholic University, S. Korea

Mr. Stefano Bonini, Associate Professor of Finance. StevensInstitute of Technology

Ms. Unatha Lutshaba, South African Cultural Observatory-Executive Director

Ms. Chrystele Sanon, Qwampus Founder, Coach & Teacher

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Plenary 6: Emerging Topics in MSMEs: The Future Ahead.

MSMEs Day 2023 - Plenary sessions

4:00 P.M. – 5:15 P.M.

​Moderator: Winslow Sargeant, Chair ICSB

Speakers:

Mr. Tomas Canosa, Undersecretary of MSME of Argentina

Mr. Hartmut-Heinrich Meyer Professor of Business Administration and Entrepreneurship at FOM, Germany

Ms. Vicki Stylianou, Group Executive, Advocacy & Policy - Australia

Mr. Jeff Alves, Editor-in-Chief, Journal of the International Council for Small Business

Mr. Paolo Licata, President BoD & CEO of CO2NVERT

Ms. Martina Tomasetig, HR Manager & Co-founder of CO2NVERT(start-up winner of BAITE Innovation Award)

Ms. Valentina Larini, technology developer of PeroGreen

Mr. Enrico Montanaro, Co-founder & CEO of Agreen Biosolutions (start-up winner of BAITE Innovation Award)

Mr. Gerhard Andrey, Member of the National Council of Switzerland

Rico J. Baldegger, Director and Professor, School of ManagementFribourg

Mr. Christian Meisel, Professor, Hochschule Magdeburg-Stendal University

Mr. Christoph Winkler, Professor & founding program director of the Hynes Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation,Iona University

Mr. Kyle Lyon, Data Scientist, AI and the Future of MSMEs

Ms. Jennifer Kirkland, Entrepreneur, Better Access to Healthcarefor MSMEs