LC Venture join efforts in successfully organizing the 2022 APEC SME held in Shenzhen

September 24, 2022

LC Venture has been active in the latest APEC Summit organized by the China Center for Promotion of SME Development, MIIT for the fourth year in a row. The event was jointly organized by relevant departments of Shenzhen Municipality. Xu Xiaolan, Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology, Qin Weizhong, Deputy Secretary of CPC Shenzhen Municipal Committee and Mayor of Shenzhen, Huang Daeyang, deputy director of the Department of International Economics, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Rebecca, Executive Director of APEC Secretariat attended the seminar and delivered speeches by video link. Zheng Hongbo, Vice Mayor of Shenzhen, presided over the seminar. The half-day, hybrid event also brought together industry representatives, MSMEs and government officials, and policymakers to exchange ideas, share practices, and help the MSMEs network. Mr SOH THIAN LAI, president of the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) also joined virtually from Malaysia. The FMM has actively helped Malaysian manufacturing and industrial service companies to develop and grow in many ways. As COVID-19, continues to confront MSMEs with numerous challenges, the event was aimed to support their recovery and development requires economies’ continuous efforts. The project will build a platform for economies to share practices and enhance their level of specialization and innovation whilst encouraging MSMEs to follow green strategies which lead to inclusive development. Under green growth, technology is the key to efficiency, innovation, and new business opportunities. Topics discussed include MSME specialized and innovative development, MSME digital empowerment and the green development of MSMEs. Participants shared their best practices in cultivating a good quality enterprise, their experiences and lessons learnt from previous experiences, and suggestions on helping APEC SMEs achieve professionalism, excellence, and innovation. A compilation report collecting the cases of APEC economies on ways of nurturing good quality enterprises will be presented to the SMEWG, the SME working Group under APEC. Xu Xiaolan said that small and medium-sized enterprises are an important support force for economic development in the Asia-Pacific region. She also added that Chinese government attaches great importance to the development of small and medium-sized enterprises, especially in guiding them to focus on their main business and strengthen innovation and reaafirmed MIIT’s commitment to accelerate the digital transformation and green development of SMEs, promote international exchanges among SMEs, explore new models of cooperation, and strive to create an open, fair and market-driven enabling environment for SME development in the Asia-Pacific region.

Xu Xiaolan, Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) addresses the Summit

Speaking to the event attendee online from Malaysia, Mr. SOH THIAN LAI said that there are 1.2 million MSMEs in Malaysia, which provide 47% of employment and contribute to just under 40% of the country’s GDP. However, these businesses have been struggling due to COVID-19 and the FMM has been active in empowering and supporting MSMEs, particularly in areas of leadership, market access, internationalisation and trade, core competence, digitization, sustainability and decarbonization efforts. Mr SOH THIAN LAI also shared how FMM is also supporting MSMEs to explore markets across the APEC member states and welcomed cooperation from China and other members.

SOH THIAN LAI, president of the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) joined LIVE from Malaysia

LC Venture has always played its role in supporting SMEs through its membership in the British Chamber of Commerce, where Gaston Chee has been heading the China Going Global (CGG) forum that supports local SMEs going abroad and visa versa. Currently, LC Venture is also active in the SME space through Gaston Chee’s recent appointment as a founding member of the Regional Economic and Trade (RET) Partnership Working Committee at China Association of International Trade (CAIT) , and Malaysia’s membership at the recently reinvigorated Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RECP). The Regional Economic and Trade (RET) is a platform created under the China Association of International Trade (CAIT) to promote economic, trade and industrial exchange between China and RECP members and assist Chinese and foreign enterprises to find new markets and partnerships. The current RET founding committee includes representatives from Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand. According to the APEC website, Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the engines of growth and innovation in the APEC region, accounting for over 97 per cent of all businesses and employing over half of the workforce across APEC economies. They contribute significantly to economic growth, with their share of GDP ranging from 40 per cent to 60 per cent in most economies. APEC’s Small and Medium Enterprises Working Group works to encourage the development of SMEs and to build their capacity to engage in international trade. The SME Working Group (SMEWG) is the champion within APEC working groups for the inclusive development of sustainable, resilient and innovative SMEs. It is the main forum where APEC economies exchange information, views, best practices and analysis concerning SMEs in the APEC region.

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is a regional economic forum established in 1989 to leverage the growing interdependence of the Asia-Pacific. APEC’s 21 members aim to create greater prosperity for the people of the region by promoting balanced, inclusive, sustainable, innovative and secure growth and by accelerating regional economic integration.

LC Venture is a leading consultancy and advisory holding company registered in the UK. The company provides quality advice on strategy and business solutions to Chinese and international clients which are mainly SMEs, multinational companies, and governments. The Company is also the investor in BeGo Education, a wholly-owned investment portfolio of LC Venture. BeGo Education operates a bespoke international education consultancy to supports Chinese families find a suitable international education pathway for their children in international schools in China or abroad in the UK and other destinations.