Improving productivity and reducing cost is thus an important preoccupation. SMEs in developing countries could use advice for competitive costing and pricing techniques. Few SMEs in developing countries, however, have developed the skills to achieve this level of economy. Many are content with traditional suppliers and large inventory that keep import costs unnecessarily high. Outdated technology may lower quality and raise cost, making the product uncompetitive.
Many old technologies are also highly polluting.
Sooner or later these SMEs will face exclusion from the market. Knowledge, skills and experience soon become obsolete unless continuously upgraded. While opportunities for academic qualifications proliferate, SMEs in developing countries have little access to practical training they really need. Option Subcontracting Programmes that link SMEs to larger firms as subcontractors have been introduced in the Republic of Korea, Taiwan Province of China and Singapore. The most successful ones help increase the response capacity of small enterprises to make them more attractive to large firms as suppliers for exports.