Small Businesses: Are They Entitled To Special Treatment?
Small businesses accounted for over 50% of the United Kingdom workforce.
In 2004 over 4.3 million small firms were established in the UK alone. These small firms were representative of microbusiness that employs 0-9 persons and small business that employs 10-49 persons. Apply this scenario to Guyana and just think about how
much this can reduce or even eliminate unemployment. Just think about
how much this can contribute to the advancement of social growth and
economic progress in this beautiful land of ours. This move will signal a new chapter of collective efforts to foster social cohesion,
prosperity and pave the way for real economic progress.

It must be established that the full enactment of the “Small Business Development Act” that the Government of Guyana now seeks to address is only one part of the critical piece of puzzle that has to come together to form a union of positive change in the interest and
sustainable development of small business. It is necessary to fashion environments that look at the comprehensive and the collective
development of small businesses and entrepreneurial think tankers in
Guyana. What this necessitates is that the great visionaries and leaders at the level of Governments, Chambers of Commerce, Trade
Associations, The Media, Universities, and Financial Institutions etc establish common grounds for more meaningful cohesion. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that nothing is being done. What I am saying is that more has to be done to affect all micro and small businesses in the true spirit of collective development. This can create the
framework for the appointment of stakeholders to monitor these business activities where they can be further encouraged to pay their
fare portion of taxes to the Government. We all have a critical role to play in fertilizing the growth of Small Businesses in Guyana. The
future of this nation and its people depends on these types of collective efforts.

Before expanding on this subject, it is necessary for me to give a definition of the term “Small Enterprise”, in light of the fact of the
many opinions that surround the terminology or definition of a “Small Firm”. Let us examine the definition of “Small Firms” as proposed in
the Bolton Report.

According to the Bolton Report, published by the Government of the United Kingdom in 1971, following the birth of the Committee of
Inquire on Small Firms, under the chairmanship of J E Bolton, states that a small firm has three essential characteristics which are shown
as follow:

Definition of A Small Firm

1)      Small Firms are managed by its owner (s) in a personalized manner

2)      It has a relatively small market share in economic terms &

3)      It is independent and not controlled by external influence or a part of a larger enterprise

The composition of small businesses in Guyana represents a critical mass of the private sector. The huge numbers of small businesses that
exist and the skilled and professional labor force that they attract justify the views expressed in this article.

At the beginning of this article, I ask, “Should Small Businesses be given special treatment”? Before you answer this, question let me point
out some of the positives about this critical group of business operatives.

1)      Small Businesses create jobs and reduce unemployment

2)      Small Businesses contribute to economic development

3)      Small Businesses enhance social growth

4)      Small Businesses contribute to crime reduction.

5)      Small Businesses create more enabling for sustainable development.

And the list of critical contribution that this sector makes to social growth and economic progress goes on.

Small Businesses that fall into the classification as put forward inthe Bolton Report should be given special treatment by the state, the
media and other critical stakeholders.  This request is not unfair and it is certainly not unusual. The (SBS) The Small Business Service
which was designed and made operational by agencies of the Government of the UK in 1972, is well established among small business leaders and entrepreneurs as an agency that champions the interests and sustainable
growth of small businesses. On the recommendation of the Bolton
Committee, The Small Firms Service (SFS) was set up in 1972 within the Department of Trade and Industry to provide information through a
network of 13 Small Firms Centers (SFC). These initiatives were undertaken by England & Wales and local Enterprise Companies (LECs),
and Scotland. Some of the primary objectives of these undertakings were aimed at improving efficiency in delivering training and other
government initiatives, directed at injecting growth into the local   economy.

In 1999, the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) were launched as a means to coordinate economic development in nine England regions. TheLocal Enterprise Agencies (LEAs), were also formed between private and
public sources which gave birth to a network of 350 business allies, with representation by the local government, chambers of commerce, universities and colleges, the media, and a mixture of private companies, including financial institutions. One might be tempted to
say that there is similar collaboration among key business operatives; but the question you must ask is how much are they working towards the sustainable development of small businesses in Guyana.

Knowledge Transfer Partnerships ( KTP) was also formed to provide small business owners with the knowledge and expertise to tackle
problems and tap into opportunities of strategic interest to their business.   Small business owners were allowed to identify projects that are vital to their development and if these project were beyond their
existing technical or business competence, university graduates, through the intervention of stakeholders, were giving special
assignment to understudy projects for businesses until the internal
members competence are built. New graduate, under the supervision of a university expert with the requisite know-how will be assigned to work the project for two years with up to two-third of the cost borne by critical stakeholders.

Let us reflect on one of my earlier statements: It must be established that the full enactment of the “Small Business Development Act” that
the Government of Guyana now seeks to address is only one part of the critical piece of puzzle that has to come together to form a union of positive change, in the interest and sustainable development of small
business. It is necessary to fashion environments that look at the
comprehensive and the collective development of small businesses and entrepreneurial think tankers in Guyana. What this necessitates is
that the great visionaries and leaders at the level of Governments, Chambers of Commerce, Trade Associations, The Media, Universities, andFinancial Institutions etc establish common grounds for more meaningful cohesion.

Guyana has the potential to shine among nations as some of the greatest minds in business. Let us all commit to social growth and
economic progress.