New Delhi: There is tremendous potential for Indian engineering MSMEs to be integrated into the global value chain due to their manufacturing cost advantage, said BB Swain, Secretary, Ministry of MSME, while addressing the inaugural session of MSME Conclave organized by EEPC India.

Swain said that for the MSMEs to achieve high growth the two most significant interventions required are related to credit assistance and technology upgradation. He noted that the Ministry of MSME has been working closely with other Ministries and Departments to facilitate the ease of doing business for MSMEs.

“The Atma Nirbhar announcements have focused on easing access to registering as MSMEs, easing their access to credit and providing them the much needed protection as far as global tenders are concerned,” said Swain. He informed the participants that MSMEs engaged in manufacturing of engineering products are about 29 per cent of the 67 lakh MSMEs which have registered since July 1, 2020 on the Uddyam registration portal.

EEPC India Chairman Mahesh Desai said that MSMEs need to catch up a lot on the technological front as this is crucial to increase India's share in the global value chain. “Make-in-India initiative has brought ample scope for the Indian MSMEs to work with the large scale global manufacturing firms and get access to their upgraded technology and efficient marketing techniques,” he said.

He noted the crucial role of MSMEs in the economy saying that the sector contributes around 30 per cent to India’s GDP and has 50 per cent share in the country’s exports. “The significance of the MSME sector in India has long been recognized and its potential has also been identified. In the National Manufacturing Policy, manufacturing output has been targeted to increase to 25 per cent of GDP,” he said. /BI/