BENGALURU: Stressing the need for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to compete globally, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said orienting the regulatory environment to facilitate their growth will be an important element of the policy mix.
The MSME sector, which employs over 11 crore people, said that Sitharaman's emphasis on the sector reflects the government's commitment to timely support and essential training.
Vidit Aatrey, Founder and CEO, Meesho, said, "Recognising the pivotal role they play, the government's dedicated focus on growth and global competitiveness is a crucial stride. Keeping with last year’s emphasis on MSMEs, the government has announced a comprehensive set of measures this year as well. These initiatives are poised to bring substantial benefits to the MSME ecosystem, reinforcing the commitment to foster growth, innovation, and resilience within this vital sector and elevating India's global standing."
FM said, "It is an important policy priority for our government to ensure timely and adequate finances, relevant technologies, and appropriate training for the MSME sector to grow and also compete globally."
As per the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, the share of MSME Gross Value Added (GVA) in all India GDP during the year 2021–22 was 29.2%. The share of MSME manufacturing output in all India manufacturing output during the year 2021–22 was 36.2%.
Sandeep Agrawal, director and co-founder at TeamLease Regtech, said the FM presented the policy outlook currently in the works for the development of MSMEs by means of technology, research & development, and financial assistance. "The vision of allowing MSMEs to compete globally is a commendable one. Over the past decade, we have significantly gained in the ease of doing business with indirect tax reforms as well as the introduction of technology to facilitate the delivery of services."
Kanishk Maheshwari, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Primus Partners, said the country cannot generate the jobs it needs and compete globally without making its MSMEs competitive.