Write an essay on "The Impact of COVID-19 on Small and Medium Enterprises" in about 200 words.
In Bangladesh, the Covid-19 pandemic hit economic players all at once. The small business sector, the country's engine of growth and employment, is one of the worst-hit sectors because of its high dependency on low-skilled labour, low compliance with occupational healthy and safety standards, and limited access to the financial market. In late April 2020, Light Castle Partners & Sheba.xyz and Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) conducted a survey on the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) and their workers and found that the pandemic-induced lock down and social distancing caused a sharp contraction in production, supply chain disruption. and workers' layoff, and that the SMEs needed financial support (eg loan) to get back on their feet To understand the effects of lock down and subsequent reopening of the economy on small enterprises and their workers, the BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) in collaboration with Monash University, Australia, surveyed around 2,000 firms from 18 districts in Bangladesh in July. Of them, 95 percent are light engineering firms and the rest are other small businesses like beauty parlour, hotel, grocery store, and clothing/tailoring. The study mostly focused on the light engineering sector (a small and informal sector) which accounts for more than two million workers and 2 percent of the GDP. During the lockdown, the majority of the small enterprises were shut down After the lockdown was lifted, very few were still closed, about two- thirds were operating at full capacity while one-third were operating at a limited capacity. After reopening these enterprises were facing two-fold challenges reduced demand and the burden of paying for fixed costs such as rent and utilities. Even after more than a month of reopening, almost all the enterprises were still running at the break-even point (very low average profit of Tk 4,000). largely due to the low volume of sales The enterprises such as beauty parlour, hotel, and tailoring were facing the most severe drop in sales reflecting the additional challenge of the service sector where social distancing is often not feasible Intriguingly, compared to the lockdown period, more owners were unable to pay the rent for their workshop premises after reopening. This is perhaps because the owners were in critical shortages of funds as the pandemic prolonged, and they used up their savings or, even worse, capital by then Now, with low sales after reopening, they are struggling to meet the pressure of fixed costs Predictably, those who were facing a larger drop in sales were more likely to face difficulty paying rent in July What made the situation worse, almost two-thirds of these enterprises also reported experiencing a shortage of raw materials. Most of them reported that they were either reducing their production or increasing product prices to cope with this shortage, further deepening the crisis Consequently, many workers of the small businesses were forced to leave jobs and migrated back to villages from towns and cities. Though most workers returned to work by July, income-recovery has been low for them. Male workers were earning about 30 percent less than the pre-pandemic period, female workers were earning $2 percent less. Female workers in these enterprises were also less likely to return to the labour market: What's most concerning is that "poorer" enterprises, which had lower financial capital during the pre-pandemic period, are less likely to operate their business at full capacity after the end of the lock down. They also had lower sales after the lock down was lifted-the poorest enterprises were experiencing about 50 percent reduction in sales, almost double the loss incurred by the richest These findings demonstrate the vulnerability of the poorer enterprises and the need for providing support for them. to start their activities. It is clear that the small businesses are in dire need of support to get back on their feet On April 13, the government announced a stimulus package for SMEs through low- interest loans (about half of the market rates) to be delivered through the banking system. Though two-thirds of the surveyed enterprises reported that they knew about this initiative, only three.
percent applied for the support, Only one out of 1960 firms received credit from the banking channel under the stimulus package of the government study found that the enterprises that had a higher profit margin before the pandemic were open during the lock down, or had higher sales after the lock down, or in other words, financially stronger enterprises were more likely to apply for government support. High costs in lending to the small enterprises and fear of non-repayment have already been established as major hindrances for small enterprises to access the incentive loans, und there is a growing concern that the stimulus package will not reach the vulnerable firms.
The targeting criteria for reaching the more vulnerable enterprises with the support package are of utmost importance. At the beginning of the pandemic, many experts had suggested that smaller enterprises should get priority for getting support. The small enterprises face several challenges in accessing credit through the formal banking system, and many of them are not even aware that they can obtain this support to recover from the shock created by the pandemic. When asked about their future business plan, almost half of these enterprises reported that they face uncertainties and could not make any plan for their business recovery. If the small businesses do not get support, many may never recover. In the end, sustaining small businesses will positively impact our economy and their closing down will send ripple effects to the wellbeing of the economy Hence, all parties of the financial system should safeguard the existence and security of the small businesses.
English
Related Question
View More
1.
The Importance of Press Freedom
(Write an essay)
Press freedom takes influential place in a country. It represent citizen’s freedom of speech. Media can expose news without obstructer or any controls by government and organizations. There should not be control over the press. As press freedom is necessary for the preventability of corruption, development of economy and maintenance of democracy. One of the advantages of press freedom is it can help to control on the level of corruption. A country which has higher press freedom tends to lower corruption in government or some private’s agents (Brunetti & Weder, 2003). Sometimes countries might think press free threats the stable of political and it might easy be controlled by different organizations. However, again the most persuasive idea come.
2.
Health for all by the year 2000
(Write an essay)
“Health for all” implies the removal of the obstacles to health that is to say, the elimination of malnutrition, ignorance, contaminated drinking-water, and unhygienic housing quite as much as it does the solution of purely medical problems such as a lack of doctors, hospital beds, drugs and vaccines. Health for All in Bangladesh contains the most comprehensive information available about primary health care services in Bangladesh, including activities in maternal and child health care, Family planning, reproductive health care, nutrition, quality of care, and health care financing.
3.
Cluster Villages
(Write an essay)
Cluster Villages
A majority of the Bangladesh population are farmers who are settled in villages. They toil to make both ends meet and produce crops for the entire nation. Bangladesh has about 68,000 villages, which are scattered throughout the country. A village is called the rural part of the country. It is called rural because it does not have modern facilities like cities. The main occupation of the villagers is farming. They are the primary source of the nation's agricultural production.
Description of Villages
Villages have either tiny hamlets of thatched huts or large settlements of tiled roofs, stones, and brick homes. An impression has been created by artists and filmmakers that an Indian village is a simple cluster of mud-plastered walls, shaded by trees, overlooking the large expanses of green fields with a few people moving slowly and of course, bullock carts. They portray a village woman with a pot on her head and walking gracefully, her skirt swaying gently. The reality is that a village is the hub of nonstop activity, with their stronger work ethics. Agriculture is tough and requires hard work. The villagers work very hard and are always trying to find innovative methods of growing wheat, rice, and lentils.
Importance of Village
The village is important because it is the primary sector of agricultural production for our country. The village is the backbone of Bangladesh economy. It also plays a major role in maintaining the ecological balance of the environment. Villages are mostly covered with trees and plants. They are covered with green grasslands. One can see acres of green fields as far as the eyes could see. They provide shelter to many animals.
Life in Village
The village life is full of contentment and happiness, as people are not in a hurry like in city life. Village people live a very simple life. Villages are mostly situated far from the hustle and bustle of urban civilization. The beauty of nature can be experienced in a village as it is surrounded by trees, flowers, mountains, streams, and farmlands. There is no pollution in the village and one can feel the freshness in the breeze. The demands of the villagers are not too high but they are still deprived of basic facilities. Clean drinking water, electricity, health center, schools, proper sanitation are a few facilities that are lacking in the villages. Their poverty is always visible in the atmosphere.
Conclusion
My village is a small abode for happy people. Here they live in harmony and peace. The village people are very hardworking and thus they must have a good source of upliftment. Like the village’s schools and clinics should be maintained and increased in number. The farmers should be facilitated by helping them to leverage their sales, make them notified about the modern techniques used in farming, and give them compensation and knowledge of the true market price of their crops. Thus, I would request governmental authorities to come forward and uplift the medical, educational, and farming facilities in the village.
4.
Problems of urban living in Bangladesh
(Write an essay)
Problems of urban living in Bangladesh
Cities in Bangladesh are faced with the challenges of rapid population increase characterized by crises such as lack of economic dynamism, governance failure, severe infrastructure and service deficiencies, inadequate land administration, massive slums and social breakdown. However, urban centers continue to grow, despite the severity of these obstacles. As a result, urban areas in Bangladesh have exceptionally high population density, but relatively low economic density. High population density, combined with rapid urbanization, implies a large and fast-growing urban population to manage. Dhaka city, the largest urban conurbation in Bangladesh, is one of the most densely populated urban areas in the world. However, the economic density of Bangladesh’s urban areas (GDP or value-added per square km) is relatively low from an international perspective. Economic activity is concentrated in Dhaka and Chittagong. About 9% of the Bangladesh population lives in the Dhaka metropolitan area, which contributes to 36% of the country’s GDP. An additional 11% of the Bangladesh GDP is generated by Chittagong, the second-largest city and home to 3% of the population. The economic gap between Dhaka and Chittagong compared to other medium and small-size cities is large and widening.
Bangladesh needs to build an urban space that is capable of innovating, is better connected and more livable in order to make cities competitive. Bangladesh’s urban space is falling behind in all three of these drivers of competitiveness. The Dhaka metro area needs to evolve into a diversified economy with skilled human resources and an innovation capacity fueled by the cross-fertilization of ideas typical of large metropolitan areas. Dhaka metro area also needs to be better connected internally and with its peri-urban areas, and both Dhaka and Chittagong have to strengthen their connection to the global economy. Improved connectivity within Bangladesh’s system of cities is also important for productivity and export competitiveness. The development of an economically dynamic urban space, in particular in the Dhaka metro region, has occurred at the expense of livability. The livability of the urban space will become an even more binding constraint to sustained growth as Bangladesh transitions to a new business model based on higher-value industries and services, which need a highly skilled and internationally mobile workforce. This is a tall order for Bangladesh, but planning needs to start today for Bangladesh’s cities to become more competitive in future.
Urbanization have crucial role to play in the economic development of Bangladesh. The circumstances under which population in Dhaka and Chittagong are growing without proportionate infrastructural development will begin to wipe out most of the gains associated with urbanization. That is, relative high levels of urbanization may not be sufficient to ensure higher levels of economic welfare in Bangladesh. This has happened in Latin America with levels of urbanization, above 80%, yet with real per capita incomes about a third that of developed nations. It could happen in Bangladesh as well unless the urban managers rise from their prolonged slumber.
5.
My school days
(Write an essay)
My school days
School is said to be a temple of knowledge, the very first place that introduced you to the world and more so your own self. My school life is all about the memories I deeply cherish. The memories of not only the fun, friendship and all the sport and extracurricular but also the way it helped me find my interests. I owe it all to my school life. It has made me who I am today.
My school life has been full of different experiences over the years. It gave various opportunities to develop not only my scholastic abilities but also the art and sport side. It supported me in my sports as well as exposed me to numerous types of people. All of this accounted to make me understand how to behave socially and in building a personality which I have today.
There are numerous things that make school life the best phase in one’s life. All of this eventually is because we are young to do mistakes again and again till we realize, dumb enough to not think about people and do what we feel like doing, curious to know everything we can and most importantly still not exposed and contaminated with the evil feelings of this world. And all of this makes us build a personality of our own.
Promotion
Download Our Mobile Apps
