USAID Small and Medium Enterprise Activity Quarterly Progress Report (January – March 2019)

The project's primary objective is to improve the competitiveness of Pakistani small and medium enterprises (SMEs). SMEA's work plan for the extended year 2 was revised to reflect a reduced spending rate of approximately $350,000 per month, as directed by USAID. This adjustment was made to ensure that the obligated amount of $15,988,837 could be stretched to cover project activities through December 2020. SMEA worked closely with the Federal Government through the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Authority (SMEDA) to help complete the revision of Pakistan's SME Policy. In February 2019, SMEA and SMEDA held the 8th working group meeting to review the revisions made to the draft SME Policy report. The Consortium for Development Policy Research (CDPR), SMEA's sub-contractor, submitted a final SME Policy Report to the project, which includes a comprehensive analysis and a set of recommendations for the revision. Following an internal review, SMEA will share the revised report with SMEDA before presenting it to USAID and the Ministry of Industries and Production during the next quarter. In January, the project's senior management met with the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) to explore potential opportunities where SMEA and TDAP could work together to help SMEs increase their exports. SMEA will continue to follow up with TDAP during the next quarter to map out specific areas for assistance. Based on an earlier request from the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) for assistance with drafting an information and communications technology (ICT) chapter for the Ministry's Strategic Trade Policy Framework (STPF) 2019-2023, SMEA held a follow-up meeting with Ms. Aisha Moriani, Joint Secretary, Foreign Trade Wing, MoC, to discuss details of the assignment in February 2019. The project also continued to implement the Challenge Fund (CF) initiative, which aims to support SMEs in accessing finance and improving their economic performance. In February 2019, SMEA held a meeting with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to discuss the progress of the CF initiative and identify areas for further support. The project also provided training and capacity-building support to SMEs through its Business Development Support (BDS) program. In terms of geographic focus, SMEA's activities are nationwide, covering all provinces of Pakistan. The project's implementation period is from December 1, 2016, to November 30, 2021. SMEA's goal is to improve the competitiveness of Pakistani SMEs, and its objectives include improving the business enabling environment, competitiveness enhancement, and access to finance for SMEs. Overall, SMEA continued to make progress in achieving its project targets during the January to March 2019 reporting period, despite the challenges posed by the revised work plan and the reduced spending rate. The project's activities are focused on improving the competitiveness of Pakistani SMEs, and its efforts are expected to have a positive impact on the country's economic growth and development.