The Role of SMEs and Entrepreneurship on Economic Growth in Emerging Economies within the Post-Crisis Era: an Analysis from Turkey

Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) are acknowledged worldwide as the drivers of socio-economic development due to their important role in GDP growth, new job creation and entrepreneurship. Despite the immense impact of the most severe economic crisis modern world has witnessed on the SME sector, number of scholarly studies focusing on the investigation of the performance factors of the SME sector during and after the crisis is interestingly very limited. This study aims to fill this gap in the SME literature, by conducting comparative analyses on main indicators of SME sector performance in major advanced and emerging economies. Findings of the study indicate that, economic growth and development of SME sector are closely linked in both developed and developing economies, while new venture creation, employment and valueadded contribution of the SME sector to the economy significantly differ across different contexts, within the post-crisis era.