Micro enterprises – support, survival or death?
Is Denmark doing anything to help us Micro businesses survive in the present financial climate?
I haven’t found anything on the Internet where I have been searching for some statistical information about the actual number of Micros forced to close or expected to close, but without any success. So it is cheering to note that the EU Commission at least –if not doing anything much concrete – is aware of the problem.
I did find a SME Fact Sheet about Danish SMEs/Micros. This points out that the value added by Danish SMEs is substantially higher than the EU average. So why don’t we get the proper support to survive without the continual struggle which has meant that many micros have had to close down or been put on the shelf while the owners have had to take employment elsewhere?
“In Denmark there are approximately 37 SMEs per 1000 inhabitants, which is almost in line with the EU average of ca 40. The proportion of SMEs as compared to all enterprises is also at par, however displaying a comparatively more important small and medium-sized enterprises sector than the respective EU average shares. On the other hand, the Danish share of micro enterprises is lower than that of the EU average. In terms of SME employment, Danish SMEs account for a somewhat smaller share of total employment than the EU average. Nevertheless, the value added of the Danish SMEs is substantially higher than the EU average.”
Not dated but the statistics referred to are from 2004 -2005 – why don’t people date these pieces of information! It would significantly increase the information value to know how dated the information is! (Rant over…)
The Euractive homepage (SMEs need ‘strong commissioner’ for enterprise 30.09.09
)had an interesting snippet:
Leitl said small firms should be prioritised. “SMEs are suffering most from the current crisis. They should get all the help they need. But also when the crisis is over, SMEs should not be left behind. All policies should be made in view of the needs and demands of small enterprises. The Small Business Act was only the first policy step,” he said.
So the powers that be are aware of the importance of supporting Micro and SMEs, but I would love to see come real, practical evidence. Any suggestions where I can find some?