Present Status of the Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Zambia

It is imperative for a country to make relevant and business friendly legislation that would enable SMEs growth in the country. They contribute greatly in jobs creation and GDP.  SMEs in Zambia employ 50 percent of the working class, similar to countries like Indonesia, Tanzania and Kenya. Over 90 percent of SMEs operate in the informal sector and this makes  it  difficult  for  the  government  to  support  the  sub  sector  efficiently.  So, SMEs contribution to the country’s development is not very clear. Because, majority of SMEs operate in the informal sector, attracting-funding from micro finance  institutions  (MFIs)  is  a  challenge  and  this  makes  (SME)  sector weak.  Entrepreneurs Financial Centre (EFC) was used as a case study.  This is a specialized micro finance institution that provides SMEs lending. The period considered in this research was from 2016-2018. Whereas, SME loans constitute about 60 percent of EFC’s loan portfolio, the loans given out are small value ranging from USD133 with a maximum of USD 46,667. The process of acquiring these loans is cumbersome and those without security may stand no chance.  This does not give borrowing appetite and thus, such a trend would keep the sector underdeveloped. Findings revealed that with an organized sector platform, SMEs contribute immensely in the development of the country. Primary and secondary data were collected through using questionnaires, interviews and observation.