Our economy has always been powered by our small and medium-sized enterprises – they comprise 99% of all Australian businesses, contributing 56% of total production in the Australian economy.

And two out of three of all working Australians are employed by these businesses, so it comes as no surprise that many households suffer when business conditions significantly deteriorate.

That is why we commissioned a new research report ‘Removing barriers – Long term success for SMEs’ to encourage practical ideas that can support long-term growth for small business. The report uncovers eight key actions that can be taken to support and boost SMEs in this country. These include making it easier to hire new staff, cutting regulation, ensuring small businesses are paid faster to increase cashflow and access to working capital, harnessing the power of digital tools, opening procurement opportunities, further access to different types of capital, lifting small business management capability and improving state business conditions.

As the Australian economy begins its cautious recovery from the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, small and medium businesses will be critical to our country’s ongoing prosperity.

For further details, please see Supporting Economic Recovery: What we can do for Small Business.