Contradiction in govt’s SME messages

 IT happened again.

The government continues to preach about growing the Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) sector and yet its action is  contradicting. 

It is a case of the right hand not knowing what  the left hand is doing and vice-versa.

In The National’s Feb 18  issue, the general manager of the government-owned OK Tedi Mine Ltd grandstands  on  the  acquisition of yet another  boat to strengthen the company’s shipping fleet to run its own logistic operations. 

While this is well and good, it is a case of the rich becoming richer and the poor becoming poorer.

I would like to take you to a small meeting in Johor Bahru in Malaysia where the governor of Iskandar state told a small contingent of SMEs including Richard Maru and government officials on how they had transformed their state in the last10 years. 

It  is simple, the government’s facilitates grew by building infrastructures and invited investors to come in and do business. 

However,  the  investors were  held  by  the hand to ensure that the SMEs and  the  people of Malaysia became part  of   the   investments by sharing the benefits of the investments. 

The investor concentrated on the core  function  of its investments while the spin-off benefits were harnessed  by  the SMEs and the people of Malaysia.

From what I just read in the paper, it makes me wonder if our government is serious about growing the SME sector. 

At the Madang summit, the government made some commitments. 

It has failed to honour its commitment  to  pass  an  SME policy in the last sitting of parliament and it has failed to  honour  its  commitment  to  allocate K200 million in the national budget to grow the SME.

I will say this again, ‘if the government  can give the Education Department K1 billion, it must also give the same amount to the SME sector to be ready for the educated when they complete their studies. 

Unemployment must not only be addressed as always said, it must be arrested. 

Santos

Port Moresby