G20 Delhi Declaration: The consensus reached among G20 leaders on the New Delhi Declaration, covering areas including climate change, counter terrorism, gender equality, green development, financial inclusion, digital public infrastructure and more, also recognised “startups and MSMEs to be natural engines of growth.” “They are key to socio-economic transformation by driving innovation and creating employment,” the declaration said among measures for global economic growth.
The declaration also recognised the challenges faced by MSMEs, particularly in developing countries, with respect to access to information. In August, the G20 leaders had proposed a ‘Jaipur Initiative to foster seamless flow of information to MSMEs’ to address the challenge of inadequate access to market and business-related information faced by MSMEs.
Moreover, the declaration first, the 2023 update to Leaders on Progress towards the G20 Remittance Target and endorse the Regulatory Toolkit for Enhanced Digital Financial Inclusion of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) for advancing financial inclusion; second, promoting responsible, sustainable and inclusive use of digital technology by farmers and an ecosystem of agritech startups and MSMEs, and third, promoting and implementing gender-responsive policies to create an enabling, inclusive, and non-discriminatory digital economy for women-led and -owned businesses, including MSMEs.
Last week, a G20 Policy Recommendation paper by the World Bank on advancing financial inclusion and productivity gains through digital public infrastructure (DPI) had explained how DPIs can help address the challenge of access to credit faced by SMEs by providing latter with access to financial services and information through digital channels.
“MSMEs are a critical component of most economies, accounting for a significant portion of employment and economic activity. However, MSMEs often face challenges in accessing finance, particularly in developing countries, where financial systems may be less developed,” the World Bank document prepared with inputs from the Ministry of Finance and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had said.
Also, the Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI), a platform for G20 and interested non-G20 countries to advance financial inclusion globally, last week had highlighted improving access to finance for MSMEs as one of the two priority areas for the next three years (2024-2026).
Also read: G20 platform for financial inclusion GPFI says MSME finance a priority area for next three years
“Credit access for MSMEs and digital financial inclusion in G20 and non-G20 countries to provide financially excluded and underserved populations with a range of formal financial services are the two existing prioritized topics for GPFI. The platform will continue to focus on the two areas “which have been greatly significant in the efforts to advance financial inclusion globally,” the action plan document had said.