Business Development Services and Small Business Growth in Bangladesh

This study aims at measuring the magnitude of business development services (BDS) and their impact on the growth of the small businesses. Growth in equity capital, growth in production, growth in employment, growth in sales, and growth in profit were used as measures of small business growth. In order to collect the required primary data, the sampled 120 small entrepreneurs were interviewed with a semi-structured interview schedule. The hypotheses framed with regard to the impact, extent, and sources of BDS were tested by using chi-square statistic and t-statistic. The results of the study reveal a significant positive impact of BDS on the small business growth in Bangladesh. The study also suggests that small business growth relates linearly with the extensiveness of BDS and that the growth of small businesses received BDS from public supporting institution is higher than that of the small businesses which received BDS from private supporting institution.