Gujarat, Walmart Explore Partnership To Boost MSME Quality, Global Market Access

Gandhinagar, Aug 22 (KNN) Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel held discussions with Walmart Executive Vice-President and Global Public

Policy and Government Affairs Head Dan Bryant in Washington, D.C., on improving the quality of state-based MSMEs and expanding their access to international markets.

The meeting was held as part of Patel's week-long US-Canada visit with a Gujarat delegation, with discussions focusing on the state's large MSME base and measures to make small businesses more competitive in global markets.

Bryant said Walmart's Vriddhi programme has trained more than 1.15 lakh MSMEs since its launch in 2019 and aims to cover 1.70 lakh enterprises by 2028, reported the Mint.

Focus On Quality, Export Readiness

Patel discussed the possibility of jointly organising workshops with Walmart and relevant Gujarat government departments to identify sectors and enterprises with strong export potential.

The proposed workshops would assess opportunities for MSMEs to access international markets while identifying gaps in product quality, standards and capacity that need to be addressed.

The discussions also explored collaboration over the next three to four months to identify global opportunities for MSMEs and small artisans.

The state government and Walmart are expected to work towards a roadmap for the proposed collaboration, which could potentially be announced at the Vibrant Summit-2027.

The initiative is aimed at strengthening links between Gujarat's small businesses and global markets, including by improving product quality and market readiness among artisans and smaller enterprises.

Broader Investment And Export Push

The meeting forms part of Gujarat's wider engagement with global companies during Patel's US-Canada visit to explore opportunities for investment, exports and economic partnerships.

The discussions were attended by Gujarat Chief Secretary M.K. Das, Additional Chief Secretary, Finance Department, T. Natarajan, Additional Chief Secretary, Industries Department, Mamta Verma, and Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister Sanjeev Kumar.

The proposed Walmart partnership is expected to focus on sector-specific opportunities and capacity building for Gujarat's MSMEs and artisans ahead of the Vibrant Summit-2027.

(KNN Bureau)