Small and Mid-Sized Business as a Factor of Economic Growth in Russia

The present edition includes two papers by the leading experts of the Gaidar Institute for Economic Policy. The papers in question are based on the outputs of research carried out by the Gaidar Institute in 2018. Both the papers deal with operation of the sector of small and mid-sized business (SMB). In the first paper – “The Statistics of the Sector of Small and Mid-Sized Business in Russia and the World” – the authors note that there are serious differences in the methods of calculating statistical indices related to the SMB sector and definition criteria. Without understanding those differences, there is no point in inter-country statistical comparison. Utilization of international experience in facilitating and promoting the SMB sector suggests that there is clear awareness of the differences in this sector’s definition criteria and, consequently, statistical data published in international organizations’ reports. In the other paper – “Comparative Analysis of the Government’s Support to Exports by Small and Mid-Sized Businesses in the Regional Aspect” – the authors elaborate on the existing patterns of support to exports in Russia and point to serious disadvantages which largely prevent small and mid-sized businesses from engaging in export activities. The methods of analyzing the assessment of the impact of export support measures at the regional level on the volumes both of the overall regional exports and exports by small and mid-sized businesses are based on econometric models.