CHAIRMAN'S FOREWORD
The participation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Canadian economy of today has recently received considerable attention. This is quite understandable given their developing importance as creators of jobs and wealth. The role of SMEs in export markets has received less attention, although their growing importance in this sector has been noted.
The members of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade decided to prepare this report because we believe that there are areas where the federal government, indeed all levels of government, can make further effort to support this extremely important and growing sector. We hope that this report will serve, not only to draw the government's attention to further measures which should be undertaken but also to enable SMEs themselves to have a better understanding of services that are currently available and how they may best take advantage of them.
There is obviously more that can be done in this area, particularly in respect of services. The provision of services is emerging as an important part of the export market but there are problems analyzing their significance and requirements because of the different forms which these exports take and because of the variety and intensity of domestic regulations that still govern the supply of services in many countries.
While this report covers much ground with which the reader may be familiar (particularly in respect of finance, government programs and services and federal-provincial cooperation), there are some areas which, we believe, have been seldom discussed and require further reflection. These include the role of our multicultural communities in accessing foreign markets where linguistic skills and cultural knowledge confer a comparative advantage; the difficult issues of corruption and illicit practices which are of real concern to SMEs in some markets; and the increasing involvement of municipalities in trade promotion. We hope that this report will stimulate further discussion of these issues, provide some guidance to SMEs in these areas and indicate to the government measures which the Committee believes will be helpful.
This report is the result of the collaboration of many people. Firstly, I extend my warm gratitude to our dedicated and efficient clerk, Janice Hilchie. The quality of the report reflects largely the hard work of our researchers. Peter Dobell, Phil Rourke and Randolph Gherson from the Parliamentary Centre, ably aided by Warren Coutts, all worked long hours to organize our hearings, identify appropriate witnesses, synthesize their evidence, help us draw appropriate conclusions from the available information and prepare the drafts of the report. We are greatly in their debt for their willingness to go the extra mile to conclude the report in conditions that significantly exceeded their contractual obligations.
The contribution of our editor, Georges Royer, and our translators are also reflected in the text. I would like to praise the work of the Committee staff: Diane Lefebvre, Administrative Support Officer, Manon Auger and Lucie Paquette, Administrative Assistants. I would also like to acknowledge the help of Committee members' staff and the research staff of the political parties. Grateful mention must also be made of the hardworking interpreters, console operators, transcribers and staff of the Publications Service who provided service to the Committee. Finally, I must thank the Members of the Committee who worked under some strain to ensure the completion of the report before the end of this parliamentary session. I hope that it will be accepted by Canadian SMEs as a testimony of our concern for this important economic sector.