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Small businesses hold the key .....
The scramble for small business (SMEs) is on amongst the major banks.  This is a  welcome development on our country.  In a recent research on SMEs, I recommended to the industry to take a bigger role in developing the sector in Kenya.
SMEs are today considered the engine of global development through employment and wealth creation and therefore reduction of poverty.

Development in the 1960s and 1970s was through supporting projects of friendly governments during the cold war.  This led to a lot of corruption culminating in numerous white elephant projects.  The collapse of communism in 1989, was followed by economic liberalization, particularly in Africa.

Structural adjustment programmes followed closely and eventually the transfer of the world’s wealth through non-governmental organizations (NGOs).  This approach is still going on but is bedeviled with numerous problems. An example is the transfer of wealth back to the originating countries through the utilization of manpower and other resources from the donors.  Other NGOs have been open to corruption and manipulation.  

The focus of world development and wealth creation is now the SMEs.  Look at the effort of World Bank through the International Finance Corporation and National Associations and lately, the Kenya Government.I believe attention has shifted to this approach after realizing that there is an inexhaustible potential for growth, through the SMEs.  You cannot however talk about  SMEs without considering entrepreneurship.Indeed, entrepreneurship and SMEs are mostly interchangeable.  But strictly speaking entrepreneurship involves value addition or innovation and not just exchange of goods and services.

Probably the admirable development of micro financing, a concept which originated from Bangladesh, has much to do with what is happening with the Kenyan Banking Industry today.The growth of SMEs translates to the growth of banking industry and eventually national and global economies. The industry should put more efforts in developing the SMEs not just through financing but also management and entrepreneurship training. Barclays Bank through its Business Club, leads in this effort which should be emulated by all.  Eventually, it will be a win-win situation for all the stakeholders.

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