Despite being 98 percent of the Dominican business fabric, the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) continue to present problems of access to financing and, in the opinion of the ambassador of the European Union in the Dominican Republic, katja afheldtthe challenges faced by MSMEs in the country persist.
“MSMEs are the most affected by bureaucracy, they suffer from delays in their clients’ payments, they often have difficulties accessing financing, and above all they need training and support in good business management practices”Afheldt said.
By participating in the activity for the International Day of MSMEsorganized by the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and MSMEs (MICM), the European diplomat pointed out that the simplification of procedures, access to credit, cleaner production and promotion of exportsare important aspects that must continue to receive political momentum and budgetary priority.
However, the minister of MICM, Víctor -Ito- Bisonó, said that in the country they began a census hand in hand with the Central Bank of the Dominican Republic (BCRD). “That will allow us to focus more accurately on the MSMEs who need assistance, help”, he emphasized.
He said that during the two years they have been in government they have been developing several programs in favor of MSMEs such as: formalization, digitization and finding a way to make them more efficient.
“What has the State policy led by President Luis Abinader done? He has deposited resources both in Promopyme and from the Banco de Reservas and they have been placed with the necessary and possible facilities in the hands of small, medium companies that have to do with Promipyme. And not only that, the president has issued a decree so that, for example, purchases in the social plans of the Presidency are exclusively called MSMEs in principle to buy them and thus it has been possible to invigorate this sector”, indicated Bisonó.
The president of the Dominican Federation of Merchants (FDC), Iván García, said that at the level of the MSMEs The issue of financing has improved “a lot” in the last two years “because Promipyme has lent more than 10,000 million pesos to MSMEs at competitive rates.
“At the level of inflation, there are many micro and small entrepreneurs who have not been able to completely replenish their inventories and this is a concern that we as a federation have. And this is why the large amount of cheap money that we are requesting so that the merchants are not decapitalized,” said García.
Financing
louis miurapresident of the Dominican Confederation of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (Codopyme), said that in his day, access to financing continues to be one of the main challenges in the sector.
“Financing is always needed, what we are looking for are financing figures with better rates at longer and more flexible times, because financial inclusion in MSMEs the problem we have is that the prudential regulations evaluate Mipymes like any company, there is no discrimination if it is small, if it is an entrepreneurship, if it is medium or if it is large. So, what we have to achieve is that there is a relaxation in these prudential norms so that the type of company or the type of business that is requesting financing is evaluated in its fair measure, ”he indicated.
