Experts involved in a half day meeting on Friday on Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) said SMEs had faced many constraints in Nepal, the organizer of the meeting said.

"SMEs face many constraints in Nepal such as policy ambiguity, cumbersome rules and regulations, unfavorable business climate and lack of access to finance," Bijay K.C., dean of South Asian Institute of Management, a non-government organization, who also is organizer of the meeting, told reporters.

SMEs considered to be crucial for poverty alleviation efforts in Nepal and meeting the millennium development goals, had been hampered by the continuous strife and unfavorable conditions for development efforts, K.C. added.

The meeting discussed at length on the development of SMEs in Nepal by identifying potential sectors/sub sectors with potential for business and income growth, business enabling environment policy and regulatory issues and access to finance, K.C. said.

Presentations titled "Enabling environment for SMEs in Nepal" and "Identifying/Selecting sub-sectors for SME development" were made during the meeting.

Participants shared their views and experiences to identify potential sub-sectors, policy and regulatory issues and financial issues related to SMEs in the country.

Members from development agencies, financial institutions, government and non-government institutions, and experts from different sectors also took part at the consultative meeting, K.C. added.

Source: Xinhua