Tell us your problems, Dunn urges SMEs

MEMBERS OF micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) have been challenged to share any and all problems they are encountering in terms of red tape, which might be hindering their business progress, with the Ministry of Industry, Investment, and Commerce.

Last week Thursday, State Minister Dr Norman Dunn said the ministry’s technical team had been reviewing the processes that inhibit manufacturers, exporters, and traders to determine what steps can be taken to minimise and simplify bureaucracy.

“Identify them, tell them to us. Don’t just stay there and complain that these things are there. If we don’t know we can’t assist in removing them. So take them to us because we are committed to implementing changes that make doing business in Jamaica even better,” he told the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association and Caribshopper.

Meanwhile, Dr Dunn disclosed that he was encouraged by data released by the Planning Institute of Jamaica the week before which showed that the manufacturing sector recorded growth in the last quarter of 2022, primarily through the food processing subsector. He said this was good news, coming against the backdrop of the external shocks caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the Russia/Ukraine war, which has been raging now for over a year.

“The supply and logistics issues that we faced in the past three years and continue to face, such as the war, is still happening and so those companies involved in manufacturing must be commended for the steps being taken to diversify because the country’s economy continues to rebound,” the state minister said. Manufacturing will need to continue to play a critical role in pushing economic growth and the export agenda, he added.

“I believed that the linkages being formed through this signing ceremony are critical for expanding growth of the MSMEs and some will find it difficult navigating the economic space, and in some cases impossible. But based on what has been outlined, all that our manufacturers and MSMEs need to continue to do is produce goods and services consistently, to ensure that their brand images maintain an untarnished reputation.”