Book
Small and Medium Enterprises in Transitional Economies

Research by the United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics Research shows that the small enterprise sector by itself will not create successful economic growth. Without supporting local-level institutions, a surrounding context of successful large enterprises and facilitative overall demand conditions, significant and sustained Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) growth is unlikely. Recent experience points to the centrality of small-enterprise systems for both micro- and macro- level success and a wide range of possible organizational and ownership forms. Local and regional governments play a vital role in stimulating SME growth, including creation of a local finance system and directly para-entrepreneurial functions (sometimes including equity ownership), consistent with the local development state model. This unique book explores the complex relationship between the growth of the SME sector and the current policies and institutional, historical and cultural forces that shape its fate