An integration of d 8 countries with the focus of competitiveness, opulence and economic accretion via the advancement of smes bangladesh perspective and scope of cooperation

European Journal of Business and Management www.iiste.org
ISSN 2222-1905 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2839 (Online)
Vol.5, No.13, 2013
45
An Integration of D-8 Countries with the Focus of
Competitiveness, Opulence and Economic Accretion via the
Advancement Of SMES: Bangladesh Perspective And Scope of
Cooperation
Md. Shakib Hossain*
, Tonmoy Toufic Choudhury, Md. Mamoon Al Bashir
Department of Business Administration, East West University, Dhaka Bangladesh
Email: hossain.shaki@gmail.com
Abstract: Radical transmutation of technology and integrating and interrelationship with the world community
facilitated economic proliferation and deplete multitudinous problems encompasses with the SME that is an
inevitable and enviable subject matter in the global market for alleviating poverty, engender manifold
employment opportunities, evolution of economic standard and exploring apparent resources. D-8 in their recent
conglomeration exhibits their necessity to consolidate their strengthen and propitious approach for the purpose of
propagation of collaboration and conciliation that indubitably prevailing propinquity and ensuring sustainable
economic amelioration. In Bangladesh, one of the D-8 members, development of SME sectors is an astounding
appliance for accomplishing industrialization, attaining millennium development goals such as eradication of
extreme poverty, developing a global partnership for development etc. Capital accumulations, business
environment, indistinctive framework for SME are the major impediments in Bangladesh. Facilitating
cross-border integration, cross national cooperation, cluster or network development, construction of
international value chain, Public- private partnership and also to establish congruous strategies and programs
within the internal infrastructure may assist to mitigate the predicaments and also comply with the commitment
of local government for unremitting growth of SME in Bangladesh.
Keywords: SME, D-8, Industrialization, MDG, cross-national cooperation, cluster development,
interrelationship, public-private partnership]
1.Introduction: In the global market vast amount of people are engage in small and medium business and
enormously contributing for the acceleration of economic exoneration and accretion. Due to the advancement of
SMEs it is widely justifying and commensurate matter the entrepreneur who have inquisitive and penetrating
mind can impeccable judgments for exploring the new dimensional matter for ensuring utilization of resources of
the countries.
Globalization of business is often seen as synonymous with the rise of gigantic multinational corporations,
the share of SMEs engaged in international activity is often much greater than the public or
policy-makers assume and it is growing rapidly (EIM 2010a). In fact, SMEs are increasingly involved
in more complex international relationships, from licensing and subcontracting agreements to exchanges
of technology. Evolution of e-commerce has accelerated these trends and there is evidence that it has
reduced the risks associated with internationalization of SMEs by improving their access to market
information and providing unprecedented marketing and communication capabilities (ACCA 2010).
There is also evidence of what researchers call the ‘born global’ effect: more than half of the population
of entrepreneurs in developed countries, and around a third in developing countries, go into business with
plans to attract at least some income from overseas (Bosma and Levie 2010). Of course, reported levels of
internationalization vary substantially between different countries. For example, more than two-thirds of
Singapore’s SMEs (69%) are internationally active (Fernandez 2010), against 44 percent of European
SMEs, which in turn are more likely to be internationalized than those in the US or Japan (EIM 2010).
Globally the vast majority of business is very small and it has been contributing significantly to the global
economic development (di Giovanni et al. 2010). SMEs represent 90 percent of total companies in most of the
economies worldwide and provide 40-80 percent of total job opportunities in addition to contributing largely to
GDPs of many countries (Elasrag 2010). Moreover, It has become commonplace, in the aftermath of the global
downturn of 2008-9, to refer to SMEs as the backbone of the global economy (ACCA 2010). SMEs stabilized

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46
economic growth and led regional economic development in many developing and developed economies.
Though recognized as a priority sector in almost all countries, small businesses often have difficulties and
challenges. To handle these challenges and to foster greater growth, almost commonly, SME development has
been drawing attention of the policy markers in their domestic policy agenda and in the cross border
collaborative efforts. The Developing 8 (D-8)1
countries in their recent Working Group Meeting in Abuja,
focused on the need to boost the economies of member nations via the development of SMEs. The group argues
that SME sub-sector provides the platform for opening the D-8 countries to global competitiveness and
prosperity, which are required to elevate them to economically advanced nations. Therefore, a meaningful effort
is necessary to foster closer collaboration among D-8 member countries with the objective to attain the goals of
SME development and thus faster growth.
In Bangladesh, one of the D-8 members, development of SME sector is the vital instrument to alleviate poverty
and for industrialization of the country. With a view to achieving its millennium development goals such as
eradication of extreme poverty, developing a global partnership for development etc., the government of
Bangladesh has given highest preference toward the development of SMEs in Bangladesh. According to a very
recent study (Reza 2012), of the total industrial units about 90 percent are SMEs and the sector provides about
80 percent industrial employment. SMEs’ contribution to the growth of the country has also increased
remarkably over the years. The contribution of SME sector in country’s GDP was about 25 percent in the year
2003 that reached to about 39 percent of the total GDP in the fiscal year 2010-2011 (Reza 2012). However, the
complete growth potentials of the SMEs are yet to be explored. Considering the fact, the policy makers, donor
agencies and researchers are now expressing their commitments towards the development of the SMEs.
2.Objectives: The fundamental objectives of this paper is illustrate here,
• To determine the potential and ways of using D-8 platforms to boost SMEs of the members countries.
• To present and analyze the information from the Bangladesh prospective.
3.Research methodology: The paper is mainly based on secondary and published information. Articles and
websites of relevant organizations have been the major sources of information on the D-8 countries. After
narrating background, the paper discusses importance of SMEs in D-8 countries including Bangladesh.
4. Importance of economic development via Small and medium enterprise (SME) in D:8
Countries:
Within the D-8 countries SMEs vary considerably in terms of their contribution to GDP. Practically a
comparative picture of the role of SMEs of different economies may not reflect true picture considering the fact
that definitions of SMEs vary widely across countries. However, almost commonly SMEs have been the crucial
source of employment and growth in global economies including D-8 countries. Despite the role of SMEs in
diversifying employment sources and overall economic expansion, in majority of D-8 member states SMEs are
exposed to challenges in such areas as access to finance, training and development, and business support
services.
Malaysian government recently rolled out the first phase of the master plan for the small- and medium-sized
enterprises (SMEs), to stimulate their productivity and innovation levels to match those of a high income
nation. In its recently declared Master Plan (2011-2020), Malaysia focuses on developing high-growth SMEs
to become home-grown champions that spearhead the economy. According to National SME Development
Council (2012) of Malaysia, SME contribution to GDP is expected to increase from 31 per cent in 2010 to 40 per
cent by 2020 as value added growth of SMEs continued to outpace the overall economy. An analysis by the
Council showed that SMEs play a critical role in stabilizing the Malaysian economy during economic shocks and
in some sectors, SMEs remain resilient and agile during the economic downturn. Of the SMEs, service sector
contributes the most to the economy followed by the manufacturing and agricultural sectors. The key growth
drivers in the services sector have been distributive trade; real estate and business services; as well as finance
and insurance, while resource-based products such as petroleum, chemicals, rubber and food and beverages led
growth in the manufacturing sector. Palm oil and food crops were the growth drivers in the agriculture sector,
and civil engineering activities supported growth in the construction sector (National SME Development Council
or NSDC 2010). Banking institutions remained the main source of financing for SMEs as they contributed 88
1
The group was founded in 1987 with the aim of fostering economic cooperation amongst the members- Nigeria, Iran, Turkey, Indonesia,
Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Egypt.

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47
percent of total SME financing outstanding of banking institutions and development financial institutions.
Government funds and schemes, factoring and leasing as well as venture capital companies complement the
financial institutions in financing the SMEs. There are arrangements from NSDC to coordinate training and
human resource development programs for SMEs across all sectors, including its Training Incentive Scheme for
small employers registered, which encourage employers to systematically enhance their knowledge and skills of
the workers.
SMEs comprise a huge portion of private sector activity in Egypt that make up roughly 90 percent of total
registered businesses. SMEs constitute more than 99 percent of all nonagricultural private enterprises in Egypt
and account for nearly three-quarters of new employment generation. Egyptian SMEs also account for 75 percent
of total employment and contribute up to 80 percent of GDP (Elasrag 2010). There is a broad consensus in Egypt
that strengthening of SMEs holds the key to the country’s economic problems. In Egypt, perhaps one of the most
commonly mentioned obstacles hindering the growth of SMEs is access to finance (Aref 2012). Although there is
a noticeable effort by financial institutions to introduce SME finance to their product lines, such efforts have had a
limited impact. In Egypt, as a proportion of total lending, the SME lending is equal to only about 5 percent. Even
with the broadly consensual categorizations of SMEs in Egypt, SME financing is still a tricky proposition, and not
simply due to a lack of willingness by banks. In a recent study conducted by the Egyptian Centre for Economic
Studies (ECES), together with the German Development Institute (DIE), poor financial literacy amongst Egyptian
SMEs - even on basic issues - was highlighted as a key obstacle to improved credit access (referred in Aref 2012).
There has been an increasing emphasis by both the public and private sectors across the region to improve SME
access to capital, through new credit programs, financial tools and targeted support initiatives. One of the clearest
examples is the Nile Stock Exchange (NILEX), the country’s and region’s first trading system for small- and
mid-cap investments, designed to increase capital flows for growth-oriented SMEs. Since the establishment of
NILEX in 2007, we have seen similar platforms coming up in other emerging markets (Allam 2012).
In Nigeria, SMEs remained the backbone of the development of the economy and the driving force of national
growth. SMEs accounted for over 87 per cent of the total number of enterprises in the country, employing more
than 75 per cent of the total workforce (ACCA 2010). There is absolutely no doubt that small and medium scale
enterprises contribute tremendously to the nation’s economic development. Harnessing the economic potentials of
SMEs in Nigeria is still a mirage since several policies aimed at SME development did not stand the test of time
due to poor implementation, erratic financing of schemes initiated by the government and other administrative
bottle-necks (Emmanuel and Daniya 2012). The barriers to SMEs growth include mainly low level of business
development support services, inefficient implementation of SMEs policy, lack of workspace and common facility
centres, skills gaps, market access, infrastructure challenges and inadequate access to credit. The central bank of
Nigeria is the principal agent for implementing government financial and monetary policies and has over the year
introduced a number of schemes for promoting improved access to credit for industrial development particularly in
Small and Medium Scale Enterprises.
In Pakistan, growth in SMEs broadened and diversified the foundations of the economy, by creating a large variety
of self-sustaining business units. There are 3.2 million economic establishments in the country of which more than
90 percent are SMEs. It employs 75 percent of the non-agricultural workforce and contributes 30 percent towards
the national GDP (Iqbal 2012). The figures would be even higher if the contribution of the SMEs operating in the
informal economy were taken into account. SMEs have enriched many industries in Pakistan, including
Agriculture, Textiles, Handloom Weaving, Leather, Carpets, Marble, Light-Engineering, Fisheries and many more.
Over the past decades, Pakistan has introduced several positive structural reforms in the commercial sector aimed
at encouraging the proliferation of SMEs across the nation. Numerous public and private initiatives are also being
conducted to swiftly boost business operations and offer significant financial support and training to the competent
SME clusters. The government under the auspices of the federal ministry of industries established the Small and
Medium Development Authority (SMEDA) a way back in 1998 to facilitate the SMEs in the country with an
additional function to advise the government on monetary and fiscal policies to promote the growth of such
enterprises. Practically, SMEDA could not influence macroeconomic policies inclined towards businesses
operating with small capital. Despite their substantial contribution to the economy, the SMEs in the countries are
facing many problems (Iqbal 2012).
The economy of the Islamic Republic of Iran is to a very large extent determined by large public and
quasi-public enterprises, controlling up to around 82 percent of the economy. This is especially true with regard
to the businesses engaged in exploiting, processing and trading crude oil, petroleum products and natural gas. In
spite of the fact, the great majority of businesses in Iran belong to the category of SMEs. SMEs comprise 90
percent of all enterprises in Iran (Bayati 2007). In this globalized market, Iran needs to expand its non-oil exports
in order to deal with competition and present itself as an important representative of middle-eastern countries in

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WTO. However, Iranian industrial SMEs contribute less than five percent of non-oil exports but it has great
potential in boosting export with enormous scope for growth in the country (Valaei and Kamarulzaman 2012).
In Turkey where the economic instability pervades, it is more than important to develop and support SMEs that
are accepted as the economic stability even in the crisis situations indeed. SMEs comprise around 95 percent of
total enterprises as in most European countries (Government of Turkey 2012). In the position paper of the
Turkey Government on ‘Horizon 2020’ it strongly encourages the small-scale enterprises to achieve the targeted
growth. It is an inevitable reality that the export activities are very important for a European economy like
Turkey. The exports play very important role in the development of the country’s economy. Based on this, it is
more than important that SMEs composed of 99 percent of the country’s economy should be successful in the
export activities. However, nowadays, the share taken by the SMEs in the export activities are small. Compared
with the large scale enterprises, SMEs’ competition capacities are weak and they also face several challenges
(Kaya and Lütfihak 2012).
Recent estimate (Reza 2012) revealed that there are about 0.6 million SMEs in Bangladesh which are gradually
occupying a remarkable position in the competitive market structure and are the breeding ground of the large
enterprises through a process of natural selection. As in most other countries, definitional differences are there in
the definitions of SMEs. In Bangladesh, two definitions exist regarding SMEs; one is given in ‘SME Credit Policies
& Program 2010’ published by Bangladesh Bank (BB) and other is in the ‘Industrial Policy 2010’ published by the
Ministry of Industry. Recently BB has issued a circular1
to determine the size of the SMEs2
in order to harmonize
the definition with the industrial policy. It is important to note that industrial policy does not cover the definition for
trading concerns. Though in literature SMEs are typically defined by small and medium enterprises, however, it is
commonly argued that SMEs should include only micro and small enterprises. The main argument is that medium
enterprises face a similar policy and regulatory environment as large enterprises so they should be lumped together
(Iqbal et. al. 2011).
Sectorial composition of SMEs is so diverse that overall aggregate picture may sometimes be misleading. A
comprehensive report for six key sectors was prepared by SME Foundation that included agro and food
processing; designer goods; electrical and electronics; leather and leather goods; light engineering; and plastic.
The designer goods industry has the highest average employment size, followed by leather and leather goods.
Agro processing and plastics are in the middle whereas light engineering is reported to have the smallest average
size in terms of employment. Products of electrical, light engineering and agro processing are mostly targeted
for the domestic markets; revenue from domestic sales is higher in those industries. Revenue from export is
higher in designer goods and in leather and leather goods industry. It is noteworthy that more than 80 percent of
revenue comes from export of leather & footwear and designer goods of micro-sized industries (Government of
Bangladesh 2011).
Export-oriented production in SMEs has gained momentum in the past few years. Entrepreneurs from Hong
Kong, Japan and Korea have taken advantage of Bangladesh’s cheap labour and its infrastructure facilities to
manufacture products for the export market. The industry has also been producing items that are considered
deemed export (e.g. accessories for the garments industry etc). Similar export successes have also been achieved
by imported metal based engineering product industries. Thus, export of engineering products has experienced
remarkable growth during the last decade, with production carried out by enterprises belonging to the SME
sector. Easy import of components has also facilitated the rapid growth of a wide variety of footwear products in
the country. Similarly, lower cost of imported paper and ink has helped commercial job printing to grow rapidly
(Rahman 2010).
Development of SME sector has been one of the main policy agenda and important item of budget documents in
1
BB SMESPD, Circular No-1, 19 June, 2011
2
According to Bangladesh Bank Circular, Small and Medium Enterprise means an entity, ideally not a public limited company, which
complies with the following criteria:
Small Enterprise- A manufacturing concern with total assets at cost including installation of fixed asset and excluding land and building
from Tk. 50 lac to 10 crore and/or number of employee ranges from 25 to 99. A service concern with total assets at cost including installation
of fixed asset and excluding land and building from Tk. 5 lac to Tk 1 crore and/or number of employees ranges from 10 to 25. A trading
concern with total assets at cost including installation of fixed asset and excluding land and building from Tk. 5 lac to Tk 1 crore and/or
number of employees ranges from 10 to 25.
Medium Enterprise- A manufacturing concern with total assets at cost including installation of fixed asset and excluding land and building
from Tk. 10 crore to 30 crore and/or number of employee ranges from 100 to 250. A service concern with total assets at cost including
installation of fixed asset and excluding land and building from Tk. 1 crore to 15 crore and/or number of employees ranges from 50 to 100. A
trading concern with total assets at cost including installation of fixed asset and excluding land and building from Tk. 1 crore to 15 crore
and/or number of employees ranges from 50 to 100.

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Bangladesh. Remarkable initiatives have been undertaken over the years for improving the performance of SME
sectors. Some of the notable policy initiatives include the following: formation of National Taskforce on Small
Enterprise Development1
; formation of Small Enterprise Cell and Small Enterprise Foundation2
; and Creation of
Special Funding Arrangements3
. Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) has so far
established 74 industrial estates across the country to provide infrastructural facilities to private entrepreneurs in
setting up small and cottage industries. To help SMEs, as many as 64 SME helpline centers have been set up at
the district level BSCIC Industrial Assistance Centers and another 7 in different trade bodies (Budget Speech
2012-13). All SME entrepreneurs, both male and female, are receiving required information services and training
from these centers. Equity Entrepreneurship Fund or EEF is an equity support program with a view to inspire the
risky but potential SME sectors like: Software industry, Food processing, and Agro-based industries.
Recently BB has made a comprehensive policy and programs on SMEs for the first time. The policy include
some remarkable features: setting up an indicative target for SME loan disbursement; following the Area
Approach Method; cluster development policy; priority to the small entrepreneurs, women entrepreneurs; special
emphasis for manufacturing and service sectors; monitoring SME activities in the Head Office of BB; following
separate business strategies in financing SME; and speedy loan sanction and disbursement (BB 2012). BB,
with the help of government and different development partners, is implementing four refinance facilities to
banks and NBFIs against their disbursed SME credit. Under these refinance facilities, 22 banks and 24 NBFIs
have signed administrative agreement with BB. According to BB (2011), about 55 percent of all agricultural
farms in Bangladesh are sharecropper households. As sharecroppers had no access to credit from the banking
sector BB has introduced a special refinancing line against loans to sharecroppers in a group-based program of
an NGO. Some institutions and bodies have also been playing crucial roles in developing SMEs in Bangladesh
that include SME Foundation4
, National Association of Small and Cottage Industries of Bangladesh (NASCIB)5
,
NGOs or MFIs and business bodies.
Despite these measures, the development of SMEs requires a big push to enable it to play its potential
development role. SMEs are heterogeneous by their characteristics, operations and processes. As such it is
difficult to generalize the constraints faced by the SME entrepreneurs. SMEs require a well-planned
marketing strategy including advertisement campaign as well as resources for implementing that strategy.
However, most SME entrepreneurs are heavily constrained in this respect as they cannot make adequate
investments in marketing and also lack necessary marketing skills. Another major constraint to the sustainability
of SME growth in Bangladesh is the inability to maintain the quality of SME products. At present Bangladesh
produces mostly common consumer goods which are labor-intensive and require relatively simple technology.
But due to poor quality, these products cannot stand competition from imported products. Lack of skilled
manpower is a perennial problem in Bangladesh. This problem is particularly acute for SME export oriented
enterprises. Moreover, limited access to modern technology is a major challenge facing the Bangladesh SME
sector.
In spite of some notable measures, it goes without saying that access to finance particularly working capital
finance and investment finance to enable them to expand their business is a prime constraint facing the SMEs.
Banks in general do not consider SME financing as profitable activity. SME entrepreneurs in Bangladesh are
also very much lacking in managerial skills and are not used to strategic planning. Although some financial
institutions and few trade bodies have introduced help desk and knowledge centers with internet facilities, such
information services are too few to provide service to the SME entrepreneurs on the whole. Lack of market
information is a serious constraint to SME development. Enabling environment for trade and business and
availability of adequate infrastructure support are other crucial challenges faced by the SMEs of Bangladesh.
1 The Government constituted a National Taskforce on small enterprise development to draw up a realistic strategy for promoting rapid
growth and vigorous competitiveness among these enterprises. The Taskforce submitted its report including a comprehensive slate of
recommendations that, if implemented, will mount a coherent strategy to promote the development of small enterprises in Bangladesh in
three phases: short, medium and long-term. The Government accepted most of the recommendations with some modifications.
2
Considering the importance of small enterprise financing, a SME cell was created in 2003 in the Ministry of Industries (MoI). The cell has
announced that 80 percent of total resources available for Small and Medium Enterprises would be allocated specially for small enterprises.
3
The following funds are now in operation in Bangladesh governed by different entities like the Bangladesh Bank, the SME Foundation and
the Ministry of Finance: Bangladesh Bank Fund; EGBMP/IDA Fund; ADB Fund:
4
SME Foundation got registration from the Ministry of Commerce in 2006, is an independent and unique non-profit organization with the
objective of developing the entrepreneurship by reducing information asymmetry, proper training and education, targeted credit wholesaling
and easing the distribution mechanism of SME products.
5
NASCIB is a trade association established in 1984 to work for the development of small and cottage industries (SMCI) of Bangladesh. It
organizes SMCI fairs for the marketing of their products produced by the indigenous raw materials, conducts research for the development of
the sector, provide consultancy to the entrepreneurs country-wide and conducts training for the skill development of the entrepreneurs.

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5. Cooperative issues for SME development in D: 8 countries:
A critical area of the global SME has been its definitional differences. A key weakness of official SME
definitions typically encompasses the vast majority of businesses in each jurisdiction, which can make targeting
and assessing SME policies difficult. To date, there is no single agreed definition of an SME, although a small
group of key variables – independence and legal status, sector, employment, turnover, capital investments are
considered in most definitions. Many governments and agencies deal with this problem by introducing further
sub-groups. For instance, jurisdictions as diverse as the EU or Malaysia have set separate thresholds for
medium-sized, small and micro-enterprises (PCG 2010). Others get around this problem by omitting informal or
micro enterprises from the SME sector altogether (Batini et al. 2010). Because small business policy has always
attracted direct and indirect subsidies to businesses identified as sufficiently ‘small’ (Levine 2005), definitions
have gradually shifted towards more objective size thresholds that could be unambiguously enforced. The
definitions of SMEs in all D-8 countries vary widely. For example, in Iran and Turkey definitions of SMEs are
similar- companies with employees between 10 and 49 are regarded as small businesses and companies with
employees between 10 and 99 are regarded as SMEs. In Malaysia, companies with upto 150 full-time
employees are included in SMEs. In case of Nigeria the number is 200. Volumes of assets are also part of some
definitions. Moreover, definitions may vary in different sectors (like service and manufacturing SMEs).
Cluster or network development is crucial for SME development. SMEs may play the leading role in forming the
supply chain or they could play notable role in between the chain as intermediate input. Although Network
development support focuses on embedding SMEs in global supply chains, which SMEs can follow in their
physical expansion. Under this approach, SMEs are seen as specialising in intermediate inputs, often acting as
subcontractors several levels down from the ultimate buyer. In fact, given the right level of industrial clustering,
even SMEs with no direct imports or exports can be important players in modern supply chains, in which
firm-level fragmentation of production processes and industry-level agglomeration coexist (Lim and Kimuna
2009). In this connection, Asia’s experience can be a great source of information. According to Wignaraja (2012),
about 22 percent SMEs are part of such networks (as direct exporters or suppliers to MNCs). Although large firms
are the leading players, there is a reasonable base of SMEs in production networks in ASEAN economies. As much
as 46.2 percent of all Malaysian SMEs engage in production networks. This is the highest in the ASEAN countries.
The figure is only 6.3 percent in Indonesia.
Due to severe global competition and high customer demands for new goods and services, the importance of SMEs
has increased. Right business environment is crucial to promote SMEs in any country so that these can face the
global challenges of competition. Alongside policies and institutions, global economies are currently promoting
private sector-led industrial parks and common facility centers. These are crucial factors for the productivity of
SMEs and competitiveness. These also determine the rates of return obtained by investments in an economy,
which in turn are the fundamental drivers of its growth rates. The status of competitiveness and productivity vary
in different D-8 countries. According to Global Competitive Report 2011-2012 of the World Economic Forum
(2011), of the D-8 countries Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nigeria are in early stage, where as Turkey is much better
positioned, other countries are in between (appendix table-2). The status of macroeconomic environment for
businesses, institutions, infrastructure also varies across D-8 countries (appendix tables 3, 4, 5).
Market access is crucial to promote international value chain. SMEs are now taking lead in a good number of
sectors. Of the D-8 countries, Malaysia has 28.1 percent in terms of SME shares of direct exports while
Indonesia has 9.3 percent. The probability of SME participation in production networks was positively and
significantly affected by various factors including larger firm size, more foreign ownership, highly educated
workers, experienced chief executives, higher technological capabilities, and ready access to commercial bank
credit (Athukorala 2011).
Public-Private Partnership (PPP)1
in different economies could play a significant role in SMEs development.
Though evidence of the effectiveness of government and private programs to support SME development is
mixed and not that encouraging (Hossain et. al 2012), PPPs could help overcoming some notable constrains. One
of the key constraints SMEs facing in developing countries is their isolation, which hamper access to markets,
information, finance and institutional support. Both public and private sector should try to develop an overall
conducive environment to entrepreneurship, innovation and SMEs growth by promoting access to finance
through regulatory changes; developing cooperation between public-private sectors financial institutions, and
effective access to financial services, working and development capital. Government measures could prove to
1 The EU defines PPPs as a kind of collaboration linking public establishment and business world that intend to provide finance, structure,
renewal, management or repairs of an infrastructure or intend to provide a service (Bovis 2010).

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be crucial to promote SMEs should be carefully focused, aimed at making markets work efficiently and at
providing incentives for the private sector to assume an active role in SME finance.
Cross-border cooperation could prove to be crucial for developing SMEs. The D-8 countries have already
undertaken notable initiatives in this connection. D-8 successfully completed a Task Force meeting on SMEs, in
Tehran, in December 2010. This meeting is the follow up to previous SME Task Forces meeting held back to
back with the 5th Meeting of D-8 WGIC (Working Group on Industrial Cooperation) and 1st D-8 Ministerial
meeting on Industry in Tehran, Iran in March 2010. This recent meeting is formally titled as ‘the First D-8 SMEs
Governmental Bodies Meeting’. During the 4th D-8 WGIC meeting in Bali, Indonesia, in November 2008, a
total of 11 Task Forces1
was established to strengthen future cooperation within D-8. Some concrete steps that
have been agreed to establish a Communication Network to undertake the necessary coordination, follow-up,
implementation of agreements and planning. It is also agreed that in order to exchange successful experiences in
terms of policies and projects on supporting SMEs and appropriate supportive measures in Member Countries,
the Communication Network shall provide an opportunity through which Member Countries can exchange their
experiences in the form of Best Practice Workshops. The member countries also agreed to establish a Legal
Entity to guarantee international investment, insurance, mitigating vulnerability of small and medium enterprises
and financial risks resulting from joint ventures between industrial units of Member Countries, as well as
allocating a part of an existing / new Industrial Park in favor of small and medium enterprises which are doing
international activities in Member Countries.
6. Recommendation for cooperation for promoting SMEs in D: 8 countries:
For identifying, quantifying, targeting and assessing SME policies and strategies in a region (group of countries)
there should be a uniform and accepted definition of SME. It is seen that many national definitions diverge
substantially and even more than one definition prevails in a single economy. A common definition of SME
could help identifying strategy for greater collaboration among D-8 countries. The existence of a common
SME definition for D-8 purpose, of course, does not preclude the use of alternative definitions by different
agents for domestic purposes, such as tax authorities, development agencies and financial intermediaries.
1
(1) Automotive (Coordinator: Iran, Egypt, and Indonesia); (2) Energy, Power Sector and Conservation (Coordinator: Turkey, Nigeria); (3)
Food production through Mechanization (Coordinator: Malaysia); (4) Cooperation/Transfer of Technology (Coordinator: Turkey, Iran); (5)
Petrochemicals and Fertilizer (Coordinator: Indonesia, Iran); (6) Cement (Coordinator: Iran); (7) Steel (Coordinator: Iran); (8) Textile
(Coordinator: Egypt, Indonesia); (9) Standardization and Intellectual Property Rights (Coordinator: Turkey, Iran); (10) SMEs (Coordinator:
Turkey, Indonesia, Iran, Nigeria); and (11) Electronics and IT (Coordinator: Malaysia).

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Figure: 1 Framework for regional integration for facing the vulnerability of climate changes
D-8 Forum may bring together influential captains of industries and entrepreneurs from respective countries and
may serve as a platform to develop policy recommendations and actions at creating a favorable socio-economic
environment for the development and promotion of SMEs in D-8 Member States. D-8 forum should explore the
possibility of creating intra-D-8 SMEs clusters in such sectors as food-agro processing, textiles, leather, light
engineering, software development, and technology and business incubators.
Establishing a broad-based cooperation framework to improve the regulatory and institutional environment for
SMEs operations in D-8 region could help member countries greatly. D-8 countries have different experiences
and successes in different SME sectors. Composition of sectoral value addition to the GDP varies. Member
countries are also in different stages of development in terms of business environment and competitiveness.
Formal arrangement for experience sharing and collaboration may help all the D-8 member countries to improve
their business environment and competitiveness to promote SMEs. These could also be crucial factors for
enhancing internationalization and marketing capabilities of SMEs.

Vol.5, No.13, 2013
53
Access to finance is recognized as one of the most crucial constraints. Initially, a feasibility study of SME credit
systems may be helpful for enhancing SME access to bank lending and loan guarantee in D-8 region. Setting up
of a Regional SME Development Fund could help innovative financing support systems, financing of innovative
ideas, financing of SME-related regional infrastructure, and networking. D-8 may think of establishing SME
Financial Facility in each D-8 member country. In regard to promoting access to finance by the central bank,
Bangladesh experience may be replicable.
D-8 countries may initiate for creating an intra-D-8 mechanism that encourages and facilitates SMEs to become
active participants in the trade activities. Free Market access among D-8 countries may prove very fruitful for
creating an intra-D-8 market place for SMEs. However, Bangladesh did not ratify the free trade formula of D-8.
Bangladesh may think of ratifying that for mutual benefits.
D-8 needs to set common goals and prepare a strategic action plan so that SMEs of D-8 region can operate in an
environment conducive to SME development, export and innovation. The main goal should be improving
capacity of the SMEs to integrate these with regional and global supply chains. The plan may targets to
promote SME development by ensuring access to finance, access to technology, utilizations of ICT solutions and
supply of skilled human resources through regional programs and arrangements. A collaborative SME
development programs within a public-private partnership framework with in D-8 region may ensure the
continued economic growth and social development in the region.
SME facilitation and technology development related initiatives should be part of the SME agenda of D-8. There
should be arrangement for improving technology transfers and licensing within the SME sector through the
dissemination of good practices and replicable success stories within and outside D-8. Dissemination of
information on regional and international opportunities in trade and investment to SMEs on the liberalization of
trade and investment could help expanding SMEs business opportunities. Sharing of information on technology
could support development of technology incubators so as to nurture the techno entrepreneurs from infancy to
take off, and commercialization and expansion.
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