A total of 6,157 enterprises have reported as being active in 2019, of which 97.3 per cent (5,990) are micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), said the the Department of Economic Planning and Statistics (JPES) in its Annual Census of Enterprises (ACE) 2019.
The report found 2,575 micro enterprises with less than five workers; 2,520 small enterprises with five to 19 workers; 895 medium enterprises with 20 to 99 workers; and the remaining 167, which were large enterprises, with 100 or more workers.
The three largest economic activities were: wholesale and retail trade with 2,104 enterprises (34.2 per cent), followed by accommodation and food services activities with 716 enterprises (11.6 per cent) and manufacturing with 654 enterprises (10.6 per cent).
On the employment front, more locals joined the private sector in the past year, an increase of 5.6 per cent, from 55,194 persons in 2018 to 58,283 persons in 2019.
The total employment in the private sector increased by 3.9 per cent, from 111,686 persons (2018) to 116,013 persons (2019).
The top employer in the country is wholesale and retail trade, with 24,925 employees (21.5 per cent).
This was followed by construction (18,398 employees or 15.9 per cent), professional, technical, administrative and support services (14,780 employees or 12.7 per cent).
In terms of revenue, the total revenue from business activities increased by 2.2 per cent, from BND24.6 billion in 2018 to BND 25.1 billion in 2019.
The highest revenue was generated by mining and quarrying valued at BND8,401.2 million (33.4 per cent), followed by manufacturing with BND5,698.9 million (22.7 per cent), and wholesale and retail trade with BND4,507.9 million (17.9 per cent).
The ACE was conducted starting in December 2019, with the main objective of collecting the latest information pertaining to growth, contribution, composition and distribution of economic activities undertaken by business enterprises in the private sector.
JPES expressed appreciation to all owners and managers of enterprises for their participation in the survey.
The ACE 2019 report of summary findings is available from JPES’ website at www.deps.gov.bn.gov.bn.