By Elizabeth Wilmot

SMALL and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will be in the spotlight next year with a push by the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) grouping to boost market access and enhance competition.

Singapore will be playing a key role in the three-year-long Apec effort when it hosts one of the working group meetings on SMEs in October next year.

Apec ministers meeting in Peru yesterday agreed on the Singapore meeting's theme: 'Helping SMEs access global markets and overcoming trade barriers'.

The meeting will focus on freeing up markets to help SMEs access more of them, helping SMEs to form networks across borders and to expand abroad.

Speaking at the Apec SME Ministerial Meeting in Chiclayo, northern Peru, Singapore's Minister of State for Trade and Industry Lee Yi Shyan said next year would mark the start of a three-year strategic plan for SMEs.

The plan emphasises issues such as the SME business environment, innovation and raising awareness of sustainable business practices for SMEs.

Mr Lee also touched on policies affecting SMEs. He said many of such policies may have to take into account local political considerations.

But he also cautioned that 'the surest way to destroy SMEs is to protect them from competition''.

He suggested that Apec members should continue to help SMEs build up their expertise in order to embrace competition.

Besides meetings, Apec Singapore 2009 will include various other activities organised by Spring Singapore and International Enterprise Singapore.

New Zealand would be organising an Access to Finance seminar together with Australia, Canada, Peru and Singapore. It would be part of a series which would address areas based on the annual World Bank study on Ease of Doing Business.

The United States would also be holding a Flu Pandemic Workshop.

The October meetings would culminate in the Leaders' Week in November, attended by leaders of the 21 Apec economies.

The first SME working group meeting will be held early next year in Thailand before Singapore hosts the October round.

This article was first published in The Straits Times on September 3, 2008.