🌍🎉 Celebrating World MSME Day ! 🎉🌍
As per the Udyam Registration Portal of the Ministry, as on 26.06.2024, there are 4.62 Crore registered enterprises, including Informal Micro Enterprises, with an employment of more than 20 crores.
The MSME sector contributes to almost 30% of the country's GDP, around 45% of manufacturing production and is the second largest employer in the country after agriculture.
#MSMEs have always been close to my heart.
My first role at the bank back in 2004 involved assisting MSMEs in Southern States by providing working capital limits to agro-based units in urban, semi-urban, and rural areas.
Meeting these entrepreneurs engaged in Rice milling, Poultry, Dairy farming, Oil seeds processing, etc., in person through direct visits, understanding their businesses, and addressing their queries on working capital facilities during traders' meetings was a remarkable experience. 🌾🏢🏡
However, it was often challenging. Many MSMEs hesitated to report actual figures on record due to tax implications, resulting in a mismatch between their actual turnover and the turnover in financial statements. This made credit underwriting difficult.📉🔄📊
Having interacted closely with over 1000+ MSMEs across Southern states, I discovered that their business plans are long-term and sustainable, driven by hard work, determination, grit, and profit motive.
Yet, the extra support from banks was crucial for them to elevate their businesses, which wasn't always readily available. 🏋️♂️📈💪
It was during this time that modern banks like ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, and Axis Bank played a pivotal role. They brought credit to the MSMEs' doorstep, ensuring timely availability to meet their business requirements. 🏦🚪💵
One crucial lesson I learned is that engagement with MSMEs should extend beyond a mere bank-customer relationship; it should be more of a business partnership. Unfortunately, this aspect often seems to be missing. 🤝🔗🤔
Below challenges are faced by MSMEs:
Struggle to get timely and suitable credit at competitive rates due to a mismatch between actual business revenues and reported revenues.
Contrast in the type of credit MSMEs require and the offerings from banks and financial institutions. 📉⚖️💼
Following are few solutions to empower MSMEs:
▶ The government should increase the tax slab for MSME units to encourage them to route their turnover through proper channels and report actual revenue numbers. 📈💼
▶ Incentivize MSMEs with tax rebates if taxes are paid regularly for, say, three consecutive years. 🏆💰
▶ Simplify the tax filing process for MSMEs to reduce complexity and encourage compliance. 📑🔍📝
On this World MSME Day, let’s celebrate the spirit of entrepreneurship and support MSME businesses.
I am proud to be a part of this dynamic sector, contributing to social impact and economic growth 🙏
Together, we can create a thriving ecosystem for MSMEs and drive meaningful change. 🌟
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