The European Commission presented in a Communication its strategy for helping the European small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to better profit from fast growing emerging markets, such as in China, India or Russia. The Commission proposes to reinforce business support services, improving the coordination and use of existing resources including the Enterprise Europe Network.

The communication ‘Small Business, Big World - a new partnership to help SMEs seize global opportunities’ presented by the Commission shows its strategy to that European small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) will better profit from fast growing emerging markets, such as in China, India, Russia or in regions like South East Asia and Latin America. The Commission considers that the key to achieve such goal is to reinforce business support services, improving the coordination and use of existing resources including the Enterprise Europe Network. Recently it has been published the extension of this network to Asia and North Africa.

According to the Commission's figures, only 13% of EU SMEs are internationally active outside the EU through trade, investment or other forms of cooperation with foreign partners. It believes that helping out SMEs to increase this figure, is the key to overcome the crisis. European Commission Vice-President Antonio Tajani, Commissioner for Industry and Entrepreneurship, stressed that SMEs are Europe's main economic strength. To help them to better exploit their potential in the global arena is a clear priority to boost competitiveness and create employment.

Around 80% of new jobs over the past five years have been created by the 23 million Europe's SMEs. Sectors such as machinery and equipment or chemicals in Brazil or energy in India have already enabled EU companies to achieve significant results, and many more examples could be given. Thus, to pave this way for businesses, Europe needs to boost their internationalisation process and provide the necessary support to SMEs when going international, according to the Commission. Future efforts should focus on how existing service providers can collaborate more effectively, often across national boundaries, and how incentives can be provided to bring this about. Comprehensive ‘mapping’ of the European supply of support services will lay the foundation for this process. All EU institutions and relevant SME stakeholders, in partnership, will be involved in the implementation of this strategy and should adhere to the priorities and guiding principles set out in this Communication when considering new activities in support of SME internationalisation, in both the short and the longer term.