Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa together represent BRICS, the acronym associated with the top five emerging economic blocs in the world. Economists believe that due to the low operating and labour cost prevailing in these countries, they will become the major suppliers of raw materials, goods and services by 2050 primarily led by the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
A virtual BRICS MSME Roundtable meeting was held on 22nd July 2021 by the Ministry of MSME, Government of India. Shri BB Swain, the Secretary of MSME chaired the meeting.
The vision of BRICS nations on the Post-Covid Roadmap for the growth accelerating sector was the main focus of the meeting.
The Government and private sector of all BRICS nations participated in the roundtable conference which was also attended by more than 200 people from industry associations, and MSME tool rooms.
Secretary MSME while addressing the roundtable highlighted the need for an immediate future roadmap to sustain and accelerate the growth of the MSME sector post-Covid pandemic. He also emphasized the preparation of a guide for creating a conducive business climate for benefitting the MSMEs.
The SME Joint-Secretary stressed upon assessing the degree of damage caused by covid 19 on MSMEs as well as the covid response policies and programs of the government for protecting MSMEs.
Co-Chair CII, National MSME Council made presentations on ‘way forward in mitigating losses from COVID-19’ and ‘post covid strategies for MSMEs development’.
Deputy Managing Director of Export-Import Bank of India, and President of India SME Forum discussed ‘Integration of MSMEs in Global and local value chains’ and ‘Role of digitalization for MSMEs in post covid 19 scenario’. They also threw light on appropriate government measures for digital transformation and ways to leverage the BRICS forum for enhancing the development and growth of MSMEs.
Series of presentations were made by both the Government and private sector of BRICS Nations during sessions scheduled separately by the concerned senior officials from the Government and private sector.
Brazilian delegates spoke on policy implementation for mitigating the adverse economic impact of the pandemic. They also talked about various programs launched for productivity improvement and increased competitiveness of Brazilian MSMEs.
Senior functionaries from Russia were also present during the virtual conference and highlighted the intermediate results of the National SME support measures of the nation. They also discussed support measures specifically meant for the digitalization of MSMEs and their integration into the global value chains.
Chinese delegates highlighted the country’s supportive policy measures implemented by the government to alleviate the disastrous economic effects of pandemic on the MSMEs.
South African representatives made a comprehensive presentation encompassing all the important aspects of this Roundtable conference along with the actionable strategies for promoting the MSME sector during post-Covid-19. The promotion of global value chains and digital transformation of MSMEs was also talked about by the delegates.
India’s planned strategies and timely actions were seen as most relevant in the existing situation and were appreciated by other BRICS nations who also deliberated their support for working together towards the economic upliftment of the MSMEs.
The BRICS nations also agreed for a trade fair to be held from 16th to 18th and decided on the remaining workshop on August 13 2021. “To deepen and strengthen the trade and economy, the events proposed by India were agreed by the BRICS Members,” added the Commerce Ministry spokesperson.
The Contact Group on Economic and Trade Issues (CGETI), of different groups of BRICS, was given the responsibility for economic and trade matters. India made certain proposals on the MSME sector and these were deliberated by the members during the meeting of CGETI held between 12th to 14th July.
The proposals made by India included BRICS cooperation on the multilateral trading system, BRICS framework for ensuring consumer protection in e-commerce, non-tariff measures resolution mechanism, cooperation framework for the protection of genetic resources, traditional knowledge, and traditional cultural expressions.
“BRICS members agreed to take forward India’s proposals to finalise them before the BRICS Trade Ministers meeting to be held on 3 September 2021, to be chaired by Piyush Goyal, the Commerce and Industry Minister,” the Ministry spokesperson highlighted. India is charing BRICS in 2021.
The Indian MSME sector typically contributes about 30% to the country’s GDP and 48% to exports. It also generates the largest employer in the country only being second to the agriculture sector. However, the two pandemic years, 2020 and 2021 have been exceptional and faced many economic challenges.
