The third week of September was an important time for the Chamber SME Committee. It was so full of SME activities that it could be likened to the Chamber's own "SME Week."

On Sept. 19, SME Committee Chairman KK Yeung (left) and Chamber Director Dr Eden Woon led a delegation of eight members to call on Deputy Secretary for Commerce and Industry Yvonne Choi. Participants exchanged views freely about problems faced by the SMEs and what they expected of the SAR Government. Topics discussed ranged from government support in other countries to SME financing and government de-regulation. Rather than cash hand-outs, the members made a strong case for more government support through de-regulation -- something on which there is clearly a common ground between the Chamber and the Commerce and Industry Bureau.

In the same evening, a good number of SME members attended the regular 3288 dinner, where Vice SME Chairman Emil Yu introduced the "new" SME Committee to the audience.

On Sept. 20, Mr Yu spoke at a seminar on "Managing Business In China: Helping the SMEs." The event was the conclusion of a year-long project funded by the government's Innovation and Technology Fund and led by Joe Tam, former vice chairman of the SME Committee.

On Sept. 21 the first ever Chamber SME Night was held at Hotel Miramar. This evening cocktail featured four major hongs ?Cathay Pacific, Swire Beverages, Jardine's OneResource Group and CLP Power ?who spoke about their procurement requirements.

The following day, more than 30 members attended a half-day training seminar on e-ERP organised by the Chamber in conjunction with IBM. The event was the first of an e-SME series designed to strengthen the IT capabilities of SMEs. It will be followed by at least two more seminars on other e-related topics.

The SME Committee rounded off the week of busy events with a committee meeting at 5 p.m., a fitting time to evaluate the week's activities and to look forward. The committee addressed policies ranging from privacy and surveillance issues for SMEs, to supply of IT manpower, to the need for a commercial credit reference agency.