Damascus, SANA- Participants in the European-Arab Conference to Support Small and Medium-sized Enterprises called for enhancing the role of the human development in the field of developing workers' cadres in the small and medium-sized industries and activating training and rehabilitation in the same field.

At a final session Sunday, the participants recommended to support creation and innovation through linking the inventors with the investors through the centers of supporting the ventures, in addition to establishing a center to develop Arab exports of small and medium-sized enterprises products to European Union countries.

They also stressed the necessity of facilitating the process of providing the small and medium-sized enterprises with the available financial products through publishing information, aiming at improving the mechanism of access through the current networks.

The participants pointed out that the European Commission offered 500 thousand Euros for joint cooperation fields.

They also called for establishing a European-Arab Business Council as a mechanism to follow up and implement recommendations of this conference.

Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Abdullah al-Dardari said at the concluding session that the government has sought to provide a competitive trade and economic environment in front of all enterprises.

"Supporting the small and medium-sized companies is an economic duty that achieves national interests," al-Dardari said.

He pointed out to the importance of the Syrian youth participation in the conference to lead the Syrian economy, adding "the small and medium companies are the base of the Syrian economy which paves the way for new job opportunities and decreases the number of the unemployed."

Al-Dardari underlined that the 11^th 5-year plan will concentrate on the competitive economy and the active companies aiming at full employment to make the Syrian economy progressive in the Middle East.

He referred to the significance of the inter-Arab and the Arab-European cooperation in developing the small and medium enterprises and providing markets for them.

With the participation of more than 550 experts from 30 Arab and foreign countries, the two-day conference held discussions on the situation of the small and medium-sized companies in light of requirements of globalization, global economic crises and the EU role in backing this form of establishments.       

I. al-Kazhali/ M. Eyon