Small and medium enterprises are the biggest contributor to employment across countries, providing over 66% of jobs on average. SMEs are also thought to drive innovation, social mobility, and productivity. However, businesses in developing countries grow less than firms in developed countries due to constraints such as limited access to finance, low levels of human capital, and inefficient markets. Because these constraints hinder the SME sector’s contribution to job creation and economic growth, governments and other organizations in developing countries spend billions of dollars each year on programs that aim to address the barriers to growth for SMEs. Unfortunately, little evidence exists on how to effectively address these constraints to unlock SME growth.

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