MSME Alliance wants gov't to help businesses recover from Hurricane Melissa

 

The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Alliance is urging the government to provide grants and low interest loans to help business owners recover from the devastation caused by Hurricane Melissa. 

 

Speaking Monday on the Morning Agenda on Power 106, MSME Alliance President Antoinette Hamilton said many small businesses, especially in western Jamaica, suffered significant losses as a result of the Category 5 hurricane.

 

Ms. Hamilton is proposing that the government urgently allocate $500 million from the Development Bank of Jamaica as grant funding to assist affected MSMEs. 

 

At the same time, she is appealing to the government, corporate Jamaica and private individuals to donate construction materials to help small business owners rebuild their homes and businesses. 

 

"So if persons are able to pledge their support, whether small organisations or larger organisations, to pledge their support to materials that they would like to provide to the MSME Alliance so that we can get these to our affected members, then they can do so by sending us an email to the msmealliance@gmail.com. Additionally, of course, we will be also seeking grant funding ourselves, or other support to help with grant funding. We are looking to partner with an entity, but that has not yet been finalised, but of course we'll be doing much more for our members," she promised.

 

Ms. Hamilton emphasised that the small business sector plays a critical role in providing employment opportunities and maintaining economic stability.

 

"And so we need to get back our small businesses in operation so that they can help to provide employment because you know that we are the largest employer in the country," she noted.

 

Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Senator Aubyn Hill, has said the Prime Minister has given his ministry the directive to begin the process to assist small and medium-sized businesses. 

 

"Whether they're barbershops or nail places or whatever else that makes a community to work, we have to look at how do we get them back. We have to understand that very often these small proprietors do not have the kind of backup savings to deal with a disaster such as this is. So we will have to find ways to do that. We're talking with the Ministry of Finance, EXIM Bank is in my ministry, so we're looking at ways to help them."

 

Minister Hill was a guest Tuesday on the Morning Agenda.