The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce held the National SME Forum 2022 recently as a virtual event, on the theme ‘Way Forward for SMEs to Navigate Through the Crisis’.
With the SME sector among the hardest hit by the current crisis, the Forum will provide a crucial and timely opportunity to engage high-level public sector officials, industry experts, organisations engaged in SME development, and other players in the SME ecosystem, in mapping an urgent course of survival and recovery.
Widely acknowledged as a key driver of change for inclusive economic growth, regional development, employment generation and poverty reduction, the sustainability of the SME sector will play a vital role in national economic recovery.
Currently mired under multiple operational, logistical and policy challenges, including skyrocketing costs of production, falling demand, challenges in sourcing production inputs, and maintaining sustainable operations amid continual power interruptions and fuel shortages, the Forum addressed these and other issues, while exploring strategies to facilitate SMEs to transform from survival to growth and expansion.
The three-day event focused on three themes addressing critical challenges specific to SMEs and also provide insights into the current macro-environment.
Day one of the event focussed on the ‘Current economic situation and the way forward for SMEs’. Days two and three were based on the themes on ‘Managing your finances’ and ‘Dealing with challenges in the supply chain’, exploring strategies to navigate increasing inflation, interest rates and costs of production, and strategically navigating export market opportunities, regulations and challenges.