Challenges Faced By MSMEs Must Be Addressed In Clusters, Not Isolation: NITI Aayog CEO

New Delhi: VR Subrahmanyam, CEO of NITI Aayog, on Wednesday said that MSMEs cannot exist in isolation and their challenges must be tackled in clusters and groups. Speaking at an event organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here, Subrahmanyam said that medium enterprises of today (or MSMEs) are going to be the large enterprises of tomorrow.

He said that the government “must handhold them and transform them from micro to small, small to medium and medium to large enterprises”. The NITI Aayog CEO underlined the three main challenges MSMEs face: improving technology, skilled workforce and issues related to quality certifications.

He said that India cannot become a developed nation until it raises its standards and manufacturing systems across the country. “Education and skills and MSMEs are the two most important areas in India’s journey to become a Viksit Bharat,” he stressed.

Subrahmanyam also launched the ‘Digital Excellence for Growth and Enterprise’, or Dx-EDGE, a platform to empower MSMEs with the tools, knowledge and ecosystem needed to become future-ready, competitive and resilient.

“By establishing a nationwide network of digital transformation facilitation centres, this initiative democratizes access to skills and innovation, enabling MSMEs to scale sustainably, enhance global competitiveness, and play a pivotal role in realizing the Viksit Bharat vision,” he noted.

According to SCL Das, Secretary, Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, frontier tech, digitalisation and technology have become a necessity to survive the global headwinds and emerging challenges and grow to become a developed nation.

He said that MSMEs have to be at the centre of the journey towards domestic growth, exports growth, adaptability for climate change, for having the required resilience and technological growth. Debjani Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow, NITI Aayog and Chief Architect, NITI FTH, said that future-proofing MSMEs through digital adoption is no longer a luxury; it’s a necessity for realising Viksit Bharat.

“With Dx-EDGE, we are building an exciting ecosystem-led approach to empower MSMEs to embrace technology, strengthen resilience and thrive in an increasingly digital world,” she mentioned. Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII, underlined the significance of MSMEs in the Indian economy and noted that Dx-EDGE will help bridge the gap in technology adoption in the segment.