Data Invest Lebanon seminar on ways for developing small and medium enterprises in Lebanon

Data Investment Consult Lebanon organized a seminar in Beirut yesterday on the situation of small and medium enterprises during which a road map was presented including recommendation regarding the operations of such enterprises amidst global competition.  The seminar also discussed the recommendations of concerned institutions and ministries involved in supporting the economy.  Fouad Zmokhol, the President of the Lebanese Businessmen Associations (RDCL), spoke in the first session of the seminar in addition to Peter Mussally, the Deputy Director of the World Bank - Beirut Office, who insisted on the importance of finding good work opportunities in the region.  He noted that the statistics of the World Bank show that more than 20% prefer to work in the public sector.  He also spoke of the importance of evaluating loans in a comprehensive way, and the need to rely, increasingly, on the KAFALAT system.  He added that the Lebanese government and the World Bank have agreed on spending USD 30 million to facilitate financing through loans.  Zmokhol called for a transformation and reform of present systems particularly at the level of supporting investment and consumption.  He also called for moving away from political divisions and insisted on the importance of supporting the growth of the national economy as well as limiting unemployment particularly amongst the youth.  Finally, Zmokhol also called for rescheduling the debts of small institutions, as much as possible, with the help of the banking sector as well as attracting investors and diversifying the base of their capital stakeholders.
Source: Al-Safir, Al-Diyar 28 March 2014