FAO Agribusiness Roundtable: SMAE Competitiveness Challenges April 5, 2011

Small and medium agro-processing enterprises (SMAEs) can play a critical role in creating rural income and employment opportunities, including through the demand they create for raw material supply by smaller and medium scale farmers. SMAEs that are appropriately capitalized and managed can produce high quality branded and labelled products, which can increase export revenues and reduce reliance on imported products – but there are there are major constraints that must be addressed in order to realize the full developmental potential of SMAEs. These include, amongst others:

• Business and operational management practices, technologies and logistics often are not at a level to be competitive with larger firms and international corporations;


• There is often weak policy and institutional support, including technological support, because they fall between the primary mandates of agriculture and commerce ministries;


• Their interests often are well represented by private sector federations and organizations, which tend to be dominated by larger firms.

FAO has in recent years assessed several specific issues impacting on SMAE competitiveness, and has facilitated dialogue and debate among FAO member countries (COAG 2007, GAIF, COAG 2009). The appraisal of FAO thus far, however, has been developed absence of systematic consultation with SMAE managers, and without opportunity to consider regional specificity. During the 2010-11 Biennium, FAO is organizing a series of regional Agribusiness Roundtables in order to validate and refine understanding of SMAE competitiveness constraints, as well as strategies and actions to address the constraints.

The Agribusiness Roundtables create an opportunity for direct dialogue with and among SMAE managers about their strategies and actions for achieving and enhancing competitiveness. Improved understanding of the challenges, strategies and priorities for SMAE development – as perceived by SMAE managers – will better position FAO to be a

credible service provider for assisting FAO member countries assisting SMAEs and engaging SMAEs in agricultural development, as has been requested by FAO member countries.

The outcomes anticipated as a result of the set of regional roundtables include:

• Clarification of FAO strategies and priorities for working with SMAEs and supporting SMAE development;


• Sub-regional refinement of strategies;


• Launch regional networks of potential collaborators; and
  
  Provide information for a FAO publication on SMAE development

The Agribusiness Roundtable on SMAE competitiveness challenges in Europe would be the fourth regional roundtable.

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Official Website: http://www.fao.org/