Naslov
Public SME Grants and Firm Performance in European Union: A Systematic Review of Empirical Evidence

Autori
Dvoulety, Ondrej ; Srhoj, Stjepan ; Pantea, Smaranda

Izvornik
Small business economics (0921-898X) 57 (2021); 243-263

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Radovi u časopisima, članak, znanstveni

Ključne riječi
entrepreneurship and SME policy ; business support ; public grants ; policy evaluation ; a systematic review

Sažetak
Governments allocate financial resources to support small- and medium-sized- enterprises (SMEs) through public subsidies and grants. However, do these public investments help supported firms to increase their performance and growth? We answer this question by conducting a systematic review of evidence in the European Union. We review studies investigating the effects of public grants on firm performance in the European Union's 28 member countries that were published from 2000 on. We provide a structured overview of 30 studies covering 13 countries. Our review offers information on the methodological approaches, variables, and findings of the previous studies. The summarised findings show mostly the positive outcomes of the grants on firm-survival, employment, tangible/fixed assets, sales/turnover, with mixed findings for labour productivity and total factor productivity. However, we point out that there are significant differences concerning the time period of analysis (investigating short-term vs long- term outcomes), and importantly, the heterogeneity of effects concerning firm size and age, region, industry, and intensity of support. Our study offers a series of recommendations for policymakers and researchers.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Ekonomija

POVEZANOST RADA