The Conference gave impetus to the changing paradigm for assistance to small enterprises: away from the direct provision of business development services by governments and donor agencies toward the development of markets for BDS appropriate to the needs of small enterprises. By facilitating the...

This presentation discusses the matching grant program started in Argentina in August of 1996. The objective of the program is to help increase the international competitiveness of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by facilitating access to, and reducing costs of export related services. This...

This paper reviews, analyzes, and documents the current IDB experience in "productive integration" logic, in order to generate a pool of useful knowledge that will contribute to improving the design and implementation of future projects. This logic is based on the assumption that, by cooperating...

This study provides a quantitative description of MSMEs in Latin America and the Caribbean. It highlights the quality of the information available in the region and, in doing so, also identifies gaps in the data. The study also presents a comparative analysis of the capacity of national MSME...

This paper sums up the experience of a Brazilian cluster of small and medium enterprises in the Sinos Valley. It shows that cooperation amongst local enterprises strengthens their ability to compete globally and that business associations can play an important role in identifying the key...

Socially and environmentally responsible business practices contribute to poverty relief and business success. This report presents some examples and lessons from private initiatives to solve business and social problems. Included are case studies of Procter & Gamble in Venezuela and Energía...

This paper examines local efforts to facilitate interactive learning and knowledge sharing among small and medium-sized apparel manufacturers in Guadalajara, Mexico. It focuses on a government-sponsored training program that gets design-oriented and technologically-advanced producers (most of...

It has been established that access to profitable markets is a key factor which determines the long-term success for all businesses. For small and microenterprises, however, various constraints limit this access, such as inadequate technology, geographic isolation, lack of raw materials and...

The aim of the study is to analyze the actual demand of SMEs from the Baltic Sea region for innovation support. The results of the conducted study can help formulate recommendations designed to increase innovation and competitiveness of SMEs in the Baltic Sea Region in the future. Research...