The World needs a stronger Small and Medium Enterprises(SME) Sector

TO: Dr Alan
From Dr John Vong

The World Bank says:
"The employment challenge is expected to become more acute as the world’s population — and the number of workers — grows, especially in developing countries. The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that in the next 10 years, the world will need more than 600 million more jobs to avoid a further increase in unemployment."
(http://www.worldbank.org/jobsworldeconomy/overview.html)

"Jobs are the main source of income for the majority of the world’s people. Jobs provide much more than economic benefits: Jobs give people meaning and purpose, and help them contribute to their families, communities, and nations. Improving people’s livelihoods and earnings strengthens nations’ economies: By building more competitive and resilient economies, investment in new job creation can increase individuals’ returns from their current jobs and help them move from unemployment or low-return occupations to higher-productivity jobs."
(http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTSOCIALPROTECTION/EXTL...)

The bulging public sector, that has caused many countries to flounder, cannot expand any further without endangering future generations. Instead governments must have a vision and an actionable strategy to grow the SME sector. Some enlightened governments are already doing that, but some are still caught up in the daily struggles of crisis management (which is self-inflicted in the first place, whether its civil war or economy), and the remainder still groping in the dark.

The IMF says:
"The IMF said the political agreements made at the last summit of European Union leaders "are a step in the right direction." Specifically, the fund praised the leaders for trying to break the "adverse links" between governments and banks by allowing the European Stability Mechanism, a bailout fund that has yet to be launched, to recapitalize financial institutions directly." (http://money.cnn.com/2012/07/16/investing/imf-outlook/index.htm)
This "adverse link" may be interpreted as the cozy relationship between governments and banks.

Nevertheless, credit must be given to those governments who have the political will to take appropriate action.

Even the Chinese leadership has spoken regarding liberating the financial markets and loosening the stronghold of the five big banks.