Infrastructure and smes development in selected asian countries Ponmani R., Associate Professor Department of Economics, Avinashilingam Institute for Home Science and Higher Education for Women, Coimbatore – 641 043 Online published on 3 January, 2012. Abstract Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) have been recognized as an important strategic sector for generating economic growth, reducing unemployment, eradicating inequality and poverty especially among developing countries. This paper aims to examine the development of SMEs, in India and Sri Lanka compared with Singapore. The paper further reviews the empirical studies in order to identify the major contributions and challenges faced by each economy. The key message from the study is that India and Sri Lanka face several domestic and global infrastructural challenges in achieving economies of scale and competing internationally. However, the challenges include the absence of adequate electricity generation, distribution and transportation; congested, poor quality roads and poor access to road facility; non-availability of suitable technology etc. However, Singapore have technical trade barriers, high operating and labour cost, and intense competition, the SMEs of the country sharpened by ongoing government support, a robust infrastructure and myriad schemes aimed at developing a pro-enterprise environment. This paper attempts to identify the challenges and offer a few suggestions towards formulating a workable framework for the SMEs in Sri Lanka, India and Singapore with special reference to the functioning of SMEs in those countries. Top Keywords SMEs, Infrastructure, Electricity, Technology, Transportation, Challenges. Top |