Más Comercio presented the MYPE Exporta program in Artigas

Consolidated as a roadmap for the internationalization of companies in the interior of the country, Uruguay XXI's Más Comercio program continues its national tour in 2025. This time, the event was held at the Artigas Departmental Historical Museum, where a new edition of the cycle featured the official launch of MYPE Exporta, a new support tool for micro and small businesses seeking to take their first steps in exporting.

Developed jointly by the Union of Exporters of Uruguay (UEU) and the Technological Laboratory of Uruguay (LATU), the program offers a model of technical, territorial, and personalized support for companies with export potential.

"Last year, LATU developed a policy of systematic support for MSMEs. We had already been working with them for years, but the board asked for something that was equitable and had a general spillover effect throughout the territory. The Union of Exporters asked us at the same time to start supporting companies in launching their first exports and systematizing them. The natural ally was Uruguay XXI, and it was within the framework of these Más Comercio activities that we made the first launch and dissemination," said Mariela De Guida, LATU's Technology and Management Manager.

An articulated model

The intervention model is based on an articulated approach, integrating key actors such as INEFOP, ANDE, Dinapyme, and LATU itself, with the aim of generating comprehensive solutions adapted to the reality of each territory.

"The program also seeks to coordinate with other institutions, so in terms of training, we can create synergies with INEFOP or ANDE, for example. The idea is, within the framework of Más Comercio, to coordinate with everyone else in search of a comprehensive solution for all companies," said Alejandra Mederos, project manager at the Union of Exporters.

In this regard, she explained that the aim is to strengthen all the efforts already being made by institutions to reach MSMEs so that they can develop and access the external market under the best conditions.

The program's goal for this first year is to raise awareness among 200 companies and provide technical assistance to 20 of them, with the possibility of continuing if the objectives are met.

“More Trade is one of the initiatives that will allow us to make it more useful,” Mederos explained.

From the territory to the international market

The edition of More Trade in Artigas confirmed that there is a latent demand for export support.

“We congratulate Uruguay XXI for allowing us to be in Artigas together with several institutions, seeking and identifying the needs of micro and small businesses to start exporting. The truth is that after these sessions, we have found potential to work with companies in the territory, leveraging them and facilitating what may be their first export,” said Daniel Pippolo, head of the Local Development Department at LATU.

In addition to providing tools for foreign trade, Mype Exporta incorporates sustainability as a cross-cutting theme. "At LATU, the perspective we are working on is sustainability, an important issue for companies to adopt and work on from an early age. To this end, we have different instruments that we make available to MSMEs. On the other hand, there is technical assistance, especially in production processes, logistics, and improvement of the environment. In this regard, we will be contributing our know-how to the rest of the ecosystem,“ said De Guida.

Beyond the event

The underlying institutional objective is for the program to serve as a concrete lever for each company, regardless of its location, to take one step closer to the world of export.

”We want companies, wherever they are, to be one step closer to the export process after receiving support. This is a process, it is a journey; exporting does not happen overnight, and we all have to be looking in the same direction and supporting companies in this regard," emphasized De Guida.

With this new tool, the public-private ecosystem continues to take concrete steps to make the country's export vocation a reality for more companies.