Hussein Elasrag

Competitiveness of SMEs in the Arab Countries Hussein Elasrag

Promoting (SMEs) have been one of the best strategies for achieving economic development. Many Arab countries have recognized the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and have formulated policies to encourage, support, and fund there. The benefits of SMEs to any economy are easily noticeable, they include: contribution to an economy in terms of creation of jobs, development of skilled and semi-skilled workers, and developing and adapting appropriate technological approaches. Following are the major driving force to strengthen SMEs in the Arab countries: (1) SMEs are the important vehicle in terms of employments and poverty alleviation. SME employs a large share of the labor force in many Arab countries.(2) SMEs make significant contributions to the national economy of the country; and can be a tool to accelerate the growth of exports.(3) SMEs foster an entrepreneurial culture and make the economy more resilient to the global fluctuations. This book's aim is to layout some general principles of support to enhancing the competitiveness of SMEs in the Arab countries.