Research for REGI Committee - Enhancing the Competitiveness of SMEs
Small and Medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are essential to the economies of EU regions, both in terms of employment and competitiveness . In 2014, SMEs employed almost 90 million people and it has been estimated that for every km2 of land surface the EU has an average of 5 SMEs. Almost all SMEs (93%) are micro enterprises and employ less than 10 people and the majority of SMEs are active in the five following sectors: ‘wholesale and retail trade’, ‘manufacturing’, ‘construction’, ‘business services’ and ‘accommodation and food services’. For the 2014-2020 period the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESI Funds) support investments in SMEs through all thematic objectives, particularly through Thematic Objective 3 (TO3) on enhancing the competitiveness of SMEs, of the agricultural sector (for the EAFRD) and of the fishery and aquaculture sector (for the EMFF). In order to first evaluate the main challenges of the implementation of TO3, the European Parliament Committee on Regional Development (EP REGI) requested the Policy Department for Structural and Cohesion Policies to draw up this briefing in support of the ongoing implementation report on "Enhancing the competitiveness of SMEs" (Rapporteur: Rosa D'Amato).
Briefing
About this document
Publication type
Author
Keyword
- administrative formalities
- aid evaluation
- aid to undertakings
- BUSINESS AND COMPETITION
- business classification
- business organisation
- competitiveness
- cooperation policy
- coordination of financing
- corporate finance
- economic and social cohesion
- economic policy
- ECONOMICS
- EU finance
- EU financing arrangements
- European construction
- EUROPEAN UNION
- executive power and public service
- FINANCE
- financing and investment
- inter-company cooperation
- INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
- operational programme
- POLITICS
- regional development
- regions and regional policy
- small and medium-sized enterprises
- Structural Funds