Description:
Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have long been recognised as important to the economy in terms of their considerable contribution to GDP and employment creation and , as such, have been a priority agenda item for APEC since the 1993 Leaders' meeting in Seattle (Hall 1995.) During the last decade, the rise of information and communication technologies (ICT) and the related rise of service sector industries have significantly altered the course of industry and SME policy from a protectionist approach to a culture favourable to entrepreneurship. In particular, policy makers have been looking at what actions should be taken to encourage entrepreneurship and innovation by SMEs in an increasely connected and global business environment (Audretch and Thurik, 2001).