Not exactly an eye-catching title! But today is: Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day.
Don’t click away just yet, it's not as uninspiring as the
name suggests.
The United National says: This year on 27 June we celebrate
for the first time the Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSME) Day.
Those enterprises, which generally employ fewer than 250 persons, are the
backbone of most economies worldwide and play a key role in developing
countries. According to the data
provided by the International Council for Small Business, formal and informal Micro-,
Small and Medium-sized Enterprises make up over 90% of all firms and account on
average for 60-70% of total employment and 50% of GDP. The General Assembly, recognizing the
importance of these enterprises, decided to declare 27 June the Micro-, Small
and Medium-sized Enterprises Day to raise public awareness of their
contribution to sustainable development.
What does a day dedicated to businesses have to do with
trees, rivers and wildlife?
There are lots of self employed people and small businesses
who together keep the countryside open for business and the countryside
professionals supplied with all they need. From the ecological consultancy
carrying out endangered species surveys to the local tradesmen selling the raw
materials to build the stiles and install the gates on our rights of way, the
little tea shop supplying parched visitors with tea and slabs of fruitcake to
hungry hikers, the local web designer (Hi Jack!) who keeps your site ticking
along; together they keep everything running seamlessly, functioning together
in their own form of ecosystem. CJS is a
part of this complex web, connecting readers and information and of course
employers with candidates. Run by a small team CJS also falls into the SME
group, not only that but we operate along social enterprise lines, that is as a
business that trades for a social and / or environmental purpose. Since its
inception this has been one of the core principles behind CJS.
Today along with the UN we're celebrating and congratulating
all the MSMEs quietly getting on with running the countryside behind the
scenes.
(The photo wasn't staged - it really was my desk at the end
of one crazy Friday in January, it's not normally quite so chaotic although it
does regularly disappear under several reams of paperwork…)