UK Aid funded DaNa Facility unveils report on Kachin State’s SME Ecosystem

UK Aid-funded DaNa Facility and Cordaid recently unveiled their study, “The Ecosystem for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Kachin State” at an event attended by Kachin State government officials, donors, humanitarian and development practitioners, local enterprises and other key stakeholders.
“Understanding the private sector landscape in Kachin and the challenges SMEs face is essential for creating new opportunities for inclusive growth – growth that creates economic opportunities for poor communities and internally displaced persons,” said Thomas Coward, team leader of DFID Myanmar’s Inclusive and Livelihoods team.
The study aims to provide donors and the development community with a better understanding of the challenges faced by small and medium-sized enterprises across Kachin, with a particular emphasis on enterprises run by internally displaced persons.
“We are pleased to see this report includes the SME landscape beyond Myitkyina, and I see this as a very inclusive and comprehensive report that shows a possible roadmap to support SMEs in Kachin State, particularly in the agriculture sector,” said Kyaw Min Oo, president of the Bhamo Young Entrepreneurs’ Association.
Understanding the SME landscape in Kachin State has the potential to create economic opportunities for people from poor communities and for groups that commonly face social and economic disadvantages, such as women, people with disabilities and people living in conflict-affected regions.
The study also looked into SMEs’ accessibility to financial services well as availability of raw materials and connection to local and foreign markets.
The report is available online at: http://www.danafacility.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/DaNa_SME_Kachin_Report_DIGITAL.pdf.

(Myanmar Business Today: https://mmbiztoday.com/dana-facility-unveils-report-on-kachin-states-sme-ecosystem/ )

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