Upskilling SMEs: how governments fund training and consulting: comparing experiences from Asia, Europe and North America

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are a major source of job creation and account for an increasing share of employment in almost every country. Recognizing their importance in the overall economy, countries around the world have established programs to boost the performance of SMEs; many of these revolve around the provision of training and/or consulting services. The aim of this study is to develop a better understanding of the ways in which grants to subsidize training and consulting services to SMEs have been financed and executed, including their relative advantages and...  [+] Show more

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are a major source of job creation and account for an increasing share of employment in almost every country. Recognizing their importance in the overall economy, countries around the world have established programs to boost the performance of SMEs; many of these revolve around the provision of training and/or consulting services. The aim of this study is to develop a better understanding of the ways in which grants to subsidize training and consulting services to SMEs have been financed and executed, including their relative advantages and disadvantages. Four schemes from Singapore, Malaysia, Ireland and the United States have been reviewed as part of this study, each different in their set-up and funding. The main body of this report discusses the rationale for public intervention, provides an overview of policy instruments, summarizes the major case study findings, and presents a number of lessons that might be considered by those interested in establishing similar schemes. The full case study reports can be found in Annex A.

Edited excerpt from publication.