Kolkata, Oct 23 (KNN) Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the North Eastern region can make huge contributions towards strengthening the rural economy and providing sustainable livelihoods for women here, said Shoko Noda, Resident Representative, UNDP in India.

Speaking at a webinar on “Impact of COVID-19 in MSME Sector in the North East India: Challenges and Opportunities”, on Thursday Noda said, ‘the pandemic has shown us how fragile small businesses are, especially for women, and the importance of resilience for MSMEs.''

She stressed that the country can achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) only if North East has equal access to education and livelihoods adding, ''MSMEs in the region can make huge contribution towards strengthening the rural economy and providing sustainable livelihoods for women in the region.''

K Moses Chalai, Secretary, NEC in his address stressed the need to seriously look into Industry 4.0 in the North East. He pointed out that COVID-19 pandemic has brought out several innovations by the enterprises of the region. With the youth in the region started taking more risks, he believed that North East today holds huge potential to come up with good startups.

''It is time to look into the governance issues faced by the region,'' he emphasized.

India Exim Bank MD, David Rasquinha in his address pointed out the importance of MSMEs for North East region and stressed on improving infrastructure and connectivity for development of MSMEs and growth of exports from the region.

''COVID-19 has disrupted the value chain of the MSMEs especially handloom, handicrafts and food processing sectors,'' he said.

He urged the entrepreneurs to formulate a business continuity and recovery plan in case of similar disruptions happening in the future, and organizations like the UNDP and India Exim Bank are in the right position based on their existing activities in the region, to assist MSMEs in their future endeavours.

The webinar is a part of the ongoing collaboration between India Exim Bank and the UNDP on the project ‘Capacity Building of MSMEs in North East India for Export Competitiveness’.

The panellists deliberated upon various issues, along with the current and future prospects for MSME sector in the North East region in the context of COVID-19 pandemic. The webinar saw participation from several industry bodies, entrepreneurs and organizations from the region.