CONSIDERATIONS REGARDING THE CONTRIBUTION OF SMES FROM THE S-W OLTENIA REGION TO THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF ROMANIA

SMEs constitute an important part of a country's economy. Small businesses are the main catalyst of economic growth. The research follows a quantitative approach that involves the process of collecting and analyzing the changes that appeared in the period 2014-2021 on SMEs in the S-W of Oltenia Region. The SMEs in the S-W of Oltenia Region are mainly represented by micro-enterprises, with a constant increase in this category of enterprises throughout the analyzed period. The active ones, according to the number of employees classified by existing counties in the analyzed region, are predominantly concentrated in Dolj, Vâlcea and Olt counties. The S-W of Region of Oltenia must give special importance to sustainable development and the maximum fruition of the resources it owns and make investments in economic growth to strengthen the regional economy.