According to the UN news agency, small and medium-sized enterprises make up over 90% of all firms and account for 50% of global GDP.
Analysts have calculated that small and medium-sized organizations provide 70% of global employment. These enterprises generate a large share of new jobs, thus ensuring a world economic recovery. However, they are the first to take a hit in the event of a financial crisis. The greatest challenge an enterprise may face is when it employs vulnerable groups of the population (women, migrants, and persons with disabilities).
In 136 countries, 62% of female-led small businesses experienced a drop in revenues, the results of the International Trade Centre COVID-19 business impact survey showed. As for male-led companies, the figure was 50%.
The World Trade Center estimates that the pandemic has had an extremely negative impact on two-thirds of global microenterprises. At the same time, larger firms have been able to adapt their business operations to the current situation and stay afloat.
Against this background, UN agencies have called on large corporations to help small and medium-sized enterprises weather the crisis. Thus, UN experts recommend boosting annual investments in small and medium-sized businesses in developing countries by $1 trillion.
