Singapore intros SME self-help portal

Singapore has released a dedicated portal for local small to medium-size enterprises (SMEs) to access information and resources to help raise productivity, writes Bernama.

The site, EnterpriseOne, is managed by Spring Singapore, an enterprise development agency for growing innovative companies. The site contains productivity concepts, tools and resources on productivity that businesses can access.

Spring Singapore says SMEs make up 99% of enterprises, employing nearly six out of 10 workers.

Relationships between Germany and Sri Lanka are set to improve, with Germany looking to support and develop SMEs, states Daily News.

German Ambassador Jens Uwe Plotner says the SME sector is the backbone of the German economy as it is in Sri Lanka. He says Germany can find new markets for Sri Lanka, encouraging entrepreneurs to start new business ventures.

Some 65% of jobs in Germany are created by SME sector companies, with 45% of companies producing natural products.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is providing financial assistance to airlines, says This Day.

The monetary authority has concluded arrangements to include airlines on the list of target beneficiaries for the N500 billion SME intervention fund. The fund was initially to cover SME activities in manufacturing, agricultural value chain and educational institutions.

The decision by the CBN to bail out the airlines is based on the fact that most of them are heavily indebted to banks in particular and by extension the banking sector.