If you help European SMEs go digital then you help power the European economy. This was the undisputed message at the recent two-day HUAWEI CONNECT 2023 event in Paris under the theme of “Accelerate Green & Digital Transition Together”. Citing data compiled by the European Commission, Vicky Zhang, Vice President of Corporate Affairs at Huawei, noted that 99% of all businesses in the European Union are SMEs. They also account for nearly 65% of jobs in the region’s private sector and contribute more than 50% of Europe’s GDP. “The link is clear,” said Zhang. “If you want the European economy to thrive, its millions of SMEs must thrive. Supporting SMEs, including startups, is supporting our future.” Zhang was speaking at an afternoon session entitled “SME Innovation: Unlocking Europe’s Economic Future”, which brought together innovators, entrepreneurs and industry leaders. Common themes emerged from the various presentations and panel discussions, not least the need for more partnerships and ecosystem-building, greater sharing of ICT knowledge and resources on open platforms, the necessity of training programmes to help SME digital transformation, and much more effort to encourage female entrepreneurship. There was also general agreement that making all this happen was a huge challenge. […]
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