Companies in the tourism, retail and hospitality sectors, among others, may apply for the grants.
It is estimated that the 7 billion euros could begin to be distributed in May.
New aid for SMEs is already underway. It will amount to 7 billion euros to be distributed among the small and medium-sized companies most affected by COVID-19 . Not fiji email list long ago, the Government approved in the Council of Ministers the new package of measures to help these companies overcome the COVID-19 crisis . But which sectors will be able to benefit from this fund?
95 activities will be eligible for the plan. The sectors most affected by the pandemic to date have been trade, tourism and hospitality. Yes, these three are among the activities that will benefit from the 7 billion euros, but they are not the only ones. The following sectors of activity will also be eligible for the SME aid plan .
The plan includes aid that SMEs in up to 95 sectors of activity will be able to access.
Essential sectors are missing
However, the Executive's plan has not been exempt from criticism. After the order was published in the Official State Gazette, self-employed workers' organizations have indicated that sectors are missing. Specifically, the president of the National Association of Self-Employed Workers (ATA), Lorenzo Amor, has pointed out that there are "unjustified omissions" in the regulation. Amor refers especially to hairdressers and beauty centers, which have also seen their accounts reduced during the pandemic.
ATA assures that it will fight so that the sectors that have not been included and that have also been affected by the restrictions can request aid for SMEs .
Self-employed workers' organisations consider the new aid to SMEs to be "very positive", but point out that they are "coming late". "The fact that 60% of the plan is allocated to direct aid is positive because it will compensate self-employed workers who have not been compensated for closing their activities," says the president of ATA.
What are the aids for SMEs?
According to the Official State Gazette, the aid may be used to pay fixed costs such as salaries or rent. It may also be used to pay off debts with suppliers or entities, whose payments have accumulated since March 2020. Similarly, SMEs may use the money to pay for electricity supplies.