Saudi Gazette JEDDAH – Entrepreneurs and small-business owners might finally have hope for easier bureaucratic procedures and more direct measures to tackle their problems in the near future. The recently established Public Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises, now led by a new board, has announced promotion of a better environment for businesses to create jobs and diversification of economy. The Council of Ministers appointed a 15-member new board of the authority last week. Minister of Commerce and Industry Majed Al-Qasabi will chair the board. Only two members of the board are from the private sector. The authority's goals are to oversee and guide as well as consult with the chambers of commerce around the Kingdom. Bureaucratic procedures incompatible with SMEs are one of the main concerns their owners face in Saudi Arabia, according to Bandar Arab, director of SMEs center at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry. "There are no regulations supporting SMEs. At present, the procedures are not facilitated for them by not consideraing that they are not large enterprises," he told Saudi Gazette. "Similarly, there are no services specific to SMEs unlike large enterprises." Difficulty to recruit employees via online portal is one example. Based on studies conducted by the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, other hurdles include financing. "Financing is another burden on SMEs because the risk in financing is generally high. However, the authority may link with banks or investors to solve this problem to help SMEs grow," Arab said. Despite businesses operating under regulations by the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs, none of the board members are from the ministry. Moreover, there are no female representatives. Currently, the environment for entrepreneurs is not business-friendly due to the numerous obstacles, Arab added. Asked how SMEs contribute to the national economy and address issues such as rising unemployment, he said, "When SMEs are allowed to grow, they will be able to create jobs." The Ministry of Commerce has recently signed a partnership with the Ministry of Labor and Social Development to launch the "9/10th program", a reform for promoting growth of SMEs. The program, announced on Thursday, aims to tackle such challenges by "removing bureaucratic obstacles" to SMEs, stated Minister of Labor Mufrej Al-Haqbani. The program further announced to "improve the working environment for SMEs, increase female participation, and create more jobs to fight unemployment".
