According to the Work Programme for 2015, as approved by the Latin American Council of SELA, the objectives of this activity are as follows: i) Gather and disseminate information on best practices in designing and implementing public policies in order to bolster the participation of SMEs in regional value chains, which serve to support the efforts undertaken by concerned Member States; ii) Promote meetings among different stakeholders, both public and private, for the implementation and evaluation of public policies for SMEs; iii) Provide analytical tools and training to government officials in designing and implementing public policies for SMEs; iv) Gain knowledge about the various successful methodologies applied by the countries of the region, as well as at the international level, for designing and implementing policies, and evaluating the results achieved; v) Promote exchanges among officials and entrepreneurs of SMEs as regards strategies to make better and more efficient public policies; vi) Identify institutional mechanisms to favour a permanent public-private dialogue; and vii) Collect and disseminate information about legislations on SMEs in the region.

The specific objectives of this regional meeting are as follows:

1. Development and implementation of a network for permanent exchange among government officials responsible for public policies for SMEs, and promotion of interconnection among them through a specific link on SELA´s Web site.

2. Collection and dissemination of information on best practices in designing and implementing public policies to support SMEs.

3. Collection and dissemination of legislations on SMEs applied in the countries of the region.