The climate impact of SMEs: Evidence from the UK and South Africa

SMEs generally do not have the same capacity as larger businesses to hire specialists and invest in consultancy support to navigate this complex landscape. Therefore, support specific to SMEs is required to help them reach their potential. The findings indicate that support should be aligned to the following themes:

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are at the heart of economies and societies around the world. They deliver products and services to consumers as well as provide employment to a large proportion of the working population.

That is why, as the world faces the challenges brought on by climate change, we must acknowledge that SMEs have a crucial part to play. SMEs have the potential to make positive improvements and support the transition towards a cleaner and more environmentally friendly future around the world both by reducing the impact of their own operations and by reducing the impacts generated in their supply chains.

Climate change is a complex and dynamic challenge, and different sectors and individual businesses must contribute to the solutions in different ways. Understanding the role that SMEs play and the support that they might require is therefore critical if they are to be enabled to collectively reduce their climate impact and that of societies in whole. Supporting SMEs will play a key role in the global move towards a more sustainable future.

This report provides an overview of the economic and climate impact of SMEs in the UK and South Africa. We have focused on two countries, one in the Global South and one in the Global North, recognizing that the impact and complexity of addressing climate change varies, across different social, political and economic contexts. Our research is underpinned by a survey of SMEs in the two countries, helping to deepen our understanding of how they view sustainability, and the measures that they are taking, or would like to take, to become more sustainable.