Dems: SMEs need help, not talk

Barbadian entrepreneurs are still waiting for real backing and the time for talk has long passed.

That is the blunt assessment from Democratic Labour Party (DLP) spokesperson on small business, Jason Phillips, who is calling on Government to move beyond the current rhetoric and deliver meaningful, measurable support for the sector.

In a recently released press statement, Phillips said that after nearly a decade in office, the current Mia Amor Mottley administration continued to fall short when it came to empowering small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), offering “too little, too late” when decisive action was needed to drive genuine economic growth.

“The reality is that small businesses are being asked to carry the economy without the level of support required to succeed,” he said. “Entrepreneurs need more than promises. They need access to capital, opportunities to grow and a clear pathway to expansion.”

The DLP is urging Government to implement urgent and comprehensive measures to strengthen the SME sector, noting that while small businesses were referenced in the recent Budget, there was no bold or coherent plan to advance their development.

Phillips stressed that SMEs remained the backbone of the Barbadian economy, representing the resilience, innovation and ambition of the people. However, he argued that successive

commitments had not translated into tangible results for many operators on the ground.

While Government has pointed to initiatives such as trust loans and limited tax concessions, Phillips said many entrepreneurs continued to face significant barriers, including difficulty accessing affordable financing, rising operating costs and limited participation in major projects.

“The disconnect between policy announcements and real-world impact is widening,” he said. “Too many small businesses are being left behind.”

The DLP also raised concerns coming out of the 2026 Budget debate, questioning the absence of forward-looking policies to stimulate growth, meaningful investment in local enterprise, and a transparent framework to ensure SMEs had fair access to Government procurement opportunities.

Phillips is now pressing for answers on several critical issues, including the level of direct grant funding provided to small businesses since 2018, the share of Government contracts awarded to SMEs, and the lack of a mandatory quota system to guarantee their participation in public spending. (BA/PR)

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