The Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LNCCI) is opening a branch of its SME Service Centre (SSC) in Savannakhet to strengthen the capacity of micro, small and medium enterprises in the province.

An agreement on the establishment of the service centre was signed recently by LNCCI President Mr Oudet Souvannavong and President of Savannakhet’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr Leuangxay Bounxokvan.

The signing ceremony was attended by the Deputy Director General of the SME Promotion Department under the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Mr Sa Siriphong, and provincial Industry and Commerce Department Director, Mr Phosisoy Kouthilath.

 When the SME Service Centre is operational it will help SME operators in the province to access finance by providing them with documentation and business plan consultation, Vice President of the Savannakhet Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr Athit Laty, said Currently, there are about 50-60 SME business units registered in the province, but there are numerous micro, small and medium enterprise units which have not registered with department.

“This service centre will help us to assess the exact number of SME business units,” he said.

Prior to signing the agreement, representatives of public and private sectors and GIZ RELATED met to share constructive, direct and unanimous views on the establishment of the SCC as a focal point for the provision of technical services to strengthen micro, small and medium enterprises in Savannakhet province, which are ready to cooperate with the centre.

The Lao SME Service Centre was established in 2017 through the joint efforts of the SME Promotion Department, Ministry of Industry and Commerce, and the LNCCI.

It is supported by the Regional Economic Integration of Laos into Asean, Trade and Entrepreneurship Development (RELATED) project run by the LaoGerman Development Cooperation.

SME service centres aim to support and provide technical services as well as promote enterprise development in general areas such as business start-up, entrepreneurship promotion, productivity enhancement, quality improvement, innovation development, and business cooperation.

They also provide Asean-related services such as dissemination of information related to Asean, strengthening competitiveness of enterprises in priority sectors, Asean standards, and market access.

Experiencedtrade experts from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce working at the centres also provide businesses and startups with new updates on SME connectivity through seminars and training sessions.

The LNCCI opened SME Service Centres in Luang Prabang and Champassak provinces in 2019 to assist businesses in the northern and southern provinces.

Cr:Vientiane Time