Japan Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JBCCI) today recommended providing proper training and technological supports to improve the quality of the Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) products in Bangladesh, reports BSS.
The chamber made the recommendation at “Presentation Ceremony of the Recommendation of the SME Support Standing Committee of JBCCI”, held at Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) office in the city. Managing Director of Conveyor Logistic Limited Kabir Ahmed presided over the function while immediate past President of JBCCI Salahuddin Kasem Khan, Executive Director AKM Moazzem Hossain and Secretary General Tareq Rafi Bhuiyan (Jun), Adviser to the Board of JBCCI Aktaruzzaman and Secretary General of Chattogram Aots Alumni Society (CAAS) Professor Dr Mohammad Saleh Jahur, among others, delivered speeches on the occasion.
In the presentation, the JBCCI said, “SMEs face problem when they come for product standardization. So, the JBCCI recommends the government to consider setting up a ‘Dedicated Laboratory’ to certify the quality of SME products.”
They urged the authorities concerned to establish ‘Public Testing and Research Centers’ in different SME clusters of the country.
“The centers may provide consultation services to SMEs for their technological improvements. The proposed centers should be equipped with the testing equipment and facilities for quality inspection and quality certification. In Japan, there are about 700 such ‘Public Testing and Research Centers’ all over the country,” they added.
The JBCCI committee recommended for a ‘Separate Division’ in the Ministry of Industries for dealing with SME affairs. In countries like India, Indonesia they have separate Ministry to dealing with SME affairs.
They called for ‘Establishing a SME Bank’ to facilitate lending to SMEs. If not, one of the state-owned banks can be converted into a SME Bank. India, Malaysia and some other countries have set up dedicated banks to cater for the needs of the SMEs.
The committee also recommended that all apex and divisional chambers should have a ‘SME window or committee or chapter’ to deal with SME issues. There can be a ‘Separate Chamber’ for SMEs of the country.
They also said a comprehensive and coordinated approach and implementation of ‘Action Plan’ is very important for the development of SMEs.
“Formulation of an ‘SME Act’ to ensure legal protection of the sector and monitor risk, while both medium and large firms compete with each other,” they observed.
They recommended emphasizing on the ‘Role of Local Government’ to implement the nationwide SME Support Policy. For example, Japan places Local governments at its core to involve local organizations, such as, financial institutions, universities and research institutions.