[Reporter’s Notebook] Consistency Is Key for SME Globalization Policies

"We will definitely achieve the global expansion of our small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with this new policy."

On the morning of the 8th, Oh Young-joo, Minister of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, visited Polaris Office, a software export SME in Guro-gu, Seoul, and announced the 'Support Measures for the Globalization of SMEs and Startups,' clenching her fist to the 10 or so SME representatives gathered in the conference room. The plan aims to nurture 1,000 domestic SMEs into export companies by 2027.

As the first Minister of SMEs and Startups from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, she has been releasing one global expansion support policy for SMEs and startups every month.

On March 22, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to establish dedicated SME and startup support desks at diplomatic missions abroad. A month later, on April 25, Minister Oh invited heads of overseas missions who came to Korea for a meeting to a breakfast gathering at Lotte Hotel, urging cooperation for the overseas expansion of SMEs.

Although she faced criticism at her inauguration in January about whether a former foreign ministry official could understand SMEs, she has received considerable praise for applying her 36 years of diplomatic expertise to the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ work. A senior official from the ministry said, "Policies that we never even imagined for decades are now being realized right before our eyes."

The global expansion of SMEs and startups is crucial. The average sales of export SMEs and startups are 17.2 times higher than the average of all SMEs and startups. The average number of employees is 5.1 times greater (according to the Ministry of SMEs and Startups).

However, in the SME field, there is some skepticism about how long Minister Oh’s globalization policies will last. This is due to past experiences where new support measures were introduced when a new minister took office but faded away after the minister left. Every time the awareness of new support measures is surveyed, 80-90% of SME owners respond that they "do not know" about them.

An SME owner operating an eco-friendly manufacturing company in Incheon said, "Last year, we started a research project for export products with support from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, but the budget was cut this year, so it was halted." If the support had continued and the export product had been developed, it would have been a perfect scenario to also benefit from Minister Oh’s globalization policies this year. However, last year’s policy was discontinued, resulting in a wasted effort.

No matter how good a policy is, if it is not sustained consistently, it only causes confusion for companies. It is hoped that Minister Oh’s SME globalization policies will be institutionalized to continue not just once but even after her departure.