Micro and Small Enterprises as an Anti‐Poverty and Employment Generation Strategy in Bahir Dar City, North‐Western Ethiopia

Abstract

Reducing poverty, unemployment, and inequality is a primary concern of development efforts of the world in general and developing countries in particular. In search of such a viable strategy to realize this goal, the promotion of micro and small enterprises (MSEs) is taken to be an important priority area of intervention, particularly since the 1980s. This article aims to contribute to and inform the ongoing debate on the MSEs approach to development by analyzing data relating to the role of promoting MSEs to employment generation and poverty reduction in Bahir Dar City, Ethiopia. To the fulfillment of this objective, a survey of 136 enterprises using a structured questionnaire and in‐depth interview methods along with the analysis of documentary sources were used to generate empirical data. The impact of the MSEs development program is examined in terms of employment creation and income generation for target beneficiaries. The findings reveal that the MSEs program had led to positive outcomes on the income and livelihood conditions of target beneficiaries. Given the importance of the MSEs sector in national development policy and practice, there is particularly little systematic analysis of the subject, however. This article thus provides an exploratory insight into the issue and contributes to the limited academic literature in the area by generating information pertaining to the role of MSEs in employment generation and poverty reduction, hence adding to the broader theoretical debate relating to the role of MSEs in development.

The role of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to the sustainable development of sub-Saharan Africa and its challenges: a systematic review of evidence from Ethiopia

“…A sizable number of people are employed in small-scale tourism enterprises with a decent average monthly income that can improve their living standard in Hawassa City (Tamene & Wondirad, 2019 ). Similarly, MSEs program had led to positive outcomes on the income and livelihood of beneficiaries in Bahir Dar City (Melese, 2017 ). With respect to sector contribution, manufacturing and construction enterprise ranked first and second, respectively, in creating job opportunities for job seekers in Kolfe-Keranio Sub-City, Addis Ababa (Tafa, 2019 ).…”

Profitability of Agricultural Micro and Small-Scale Enterprise in North Wollo Zone, Amhara Regional State, Ethiopia

“…Micro and small enterprise has generated a large share of economic growth and employment in Ethiopia. It has a great contribution in reducing unemployment and providing income to those owners and employees of MSEs (Mahmud et al, 2020), and improving the livelihood conditions of target beneficiaries (Bekele, 2017). During 2019/20 alone, 111,547 new MSEs employed about 1.6 million people and received more than Birr 7.7 billion in loans for their operations (NBE, 2020).…”