Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has directed Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and the Credit Guarantee Funds Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) to set up a framework that will enable them to process loans to SME units faster and also provide insurance cover to the SME exporters, an official statement said on Tuesday.

The development comes after Piyush Goyal met MSME associations from various industries to understand their issues and examine the steps to resolve them.

"The most important issues that were discussed in the meeting included the problem faced by SME units in accessing credit from banks, delay in payments from Public Sector Units and Government departments, the issue of GST refund, the dearth of skilled manpower in the SME sector and the issue of differing wages in States across the country," the ministry said in a statement.

At present, the MSME sector employs over 100 million people and accounts for 45 per cent of manufacturing output and more than 40 per cent of the country's exports.

He urged the SME sector manufacturers to produce high quality goods following international standards so that exports from the SME sector may become a part of the global value chain.

On the issue of delayed payments, Goyal examined the possibility of big companies making full payment to SMEs against delivery so that working capital of SME units are not blocked.

In order to mainstream the 8 million Indian women who have started and are running their own businesses Minister directed that the Government e-Marketplace may handhold the women led SMEs and onboard these enterprises on the GeM portal.

The Commerce and Industry Minister assured the SME sector that the Government will give all support and help in the skilling of manpower required for the sector and in all other areas that requires intervention of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.