Analysis of business classification by size of member or associate
countries of the Andean Community (CAN)
..........................................
Análisis de clasificación empresarial por tamaño de países miembros o asociados de la
Comunidad Andina – CAN
Barrera Liévano, Jhony Alexander
Parra Ramírez, Sandra Miyey
Parada Fonseca, Sandra Patricia
ABSTRACT
The present research is developed having as its
target population the countries that are
members or associates of the Andean
Community - CAN as of December 31, 2019.
The main objective is to describe the
classifications by company size given by the
related countries. The research is developed
under a methodology with a mixed approach,
descriptive and documentary type. The
following research questions are posed: What
are the variables used by the CAN countries for
the classification of companies according to
size? Is there a high dispersion among the
quantitative variables used by the CAN
countries for the classification of companies
according to size? The research hypothesis is
that "the CAN member or associate countries
present a high dispersion in terms of their
quantitative variables for business
classification by size based on the simple
average and standard deviation". As results, it
is identified that all of them include the
variable of annual net sales revenue and 89%
Received: November 16, 2020
Approved: December 12, 2021
...........................................
D. student in projects at the American
University of Europe.
Corporación Unificada Nacional de
Educación Superior – CUN
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2274-
2297
jhony.barrera.lievano@gmail.com
Master in International Economic
Relations
Corporación Universitaria Minuto de
Dios (Bogota - Colombia)
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7273-
9870
sandra.parra@uniminuto.edu
Master in Business Administration
Corporación Universitaria Minuto de
Dios (Bogota - Colombia)
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9080-
8238
Sandrappf2009@gmail.com
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the variable of number of workers, and that the
quantification of these variables does not
present high dispersion. Finally, new research
topics are proposed.
Keywords: Business classification; Andean
Community; Regional organization;
Enterprise size
RESUMEN
La presente investigación se desarrolla
teniendo como población objeto de estudio los
países que son miembros o asociados a la
Comunidad Andina – CAN a 31 de diciembre
de 2019. Como objetivo principal se propone
describir las clasificaciones por tamaño de
empresas dadas por los países relacionados. Se
desarrolla la investigación bajo una
metodología con enfoque mixto, de tipo
descriptivo y documental. Se plantean las
siguientes preguntas de investigación: ¿Cuáles
son las variables que utilizan los países de la
CAN para la clasificación de las empresas
según tamaño? ¿existe una alta dispersión
entre las variables cuantitativas planteadas por
los países de la CAN para la clasificación de las
empresas según tamaño? Se plantea como
hipótesis de investigación que “los países
miembros o asociados de la CAN presentan
una alta dispersión en cuanto a sus variables
cuantitativas de clasificación empresarial por
tamaño tomando como base el promedio
simple y la desviación estándar”. Como
resultados se identifica que todos acogen la
variable de ingresos por ventas netas anuales y
que el 89% la variable de número de
trabajadores, y que la cuantificación de estas
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variables no presenta alta dispersión.
Finalmente se proponen nuevos temas de
investigación.
Palabras clave: Clasificación empresarial;
Comunidad Andina; Organismo regional;
Tamaño de empresa
Introduction
Companies are characterized by being the engine of the economy and generators of
value for society. In fact, from an economic perspective, the company is considered as
one of the three actors in the economic circuit, which is also composed of the State and
the family (Massad, 2007), and which, in a symbiotic way, generates mutually
beneficial relationships.
The classification of companies, not by economic activity, but by size, has been
considered as a study and control variable in research on phenomena related to the
same concept (Huerta, et. al., 2010). However, the classification per se of the size of
the economic unit involves various difficulties (Santiago, 2003), which means that it
varies depending on the country or region, given the existence of international treaties
on the subject.
Although there may be several questions regarding the classification by size of
companies, it is one question that becomes the main focus, as illustrated by Nieto and
Sanchez (2015) when they ask what are the factors that determine the optimal size of
a company? As mentioned by González-Alvarado (2005) and Barrera (2019), there are
several quantitative variables that have been taken into account for this classification,
among which are the number of employees, volume of income, volume of sales, volume
of assets, economic sector, among others.
The importance of classifying companies according to their size lies in the creation of
incentives by the different governments for the promotion, development, growth and
sustainability of business units (Held, 1995) (Tapia, 1997) (Silva, 2005), since this
results in the strengthening of domestic economies through the generation of
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employment (Melgarejo, et al, 2013; Barrera and Parra, 2020; Barrera, Parada and
Serrano, 2020).
Although the countries internally develop their own legislation to determine the size
of companies, this classification does not obey standardized parameters at a global
level, which makes it almost impossible to compare existing statistics directly. Due to
the above, the objective of this research is to describe the classifications by company
size given by the member or associated countries of the Andean Community - CAN.
The following questions are posed: What are the variables used by the CAN countries
to classify companies according to size? With regard to the quantitative variables
presented by the countries, is there a high level of dispersion? The research hypothesis
is that "the CAN member or associate countries show a high dispersion in terms of
their quantitative variables based on the simple average and standard deviation". The
research is developed under a mixed approach methodology, documentary type.
The Andean Community - CAN
The ideal of having a united America proclaimed by Simón Bolívar and described in
the Letter of Jamaica of September 6, 1815 (Artieda, 2019), is the symbol of the
beginning of a large number of regional processes that were developed a century and
a half later in Latin America, including the Andean Community - CAN, Southern
Common Market - MERCOSUR, Latin American Integration Association - ALADI,
Caribbean Community - CARICOM, Latin American Free Trade Association - ALALC,
among other supranational organizations. As a result of the change in regional
scenarios coming from Europe (Tremolada 2006), these alliances have had the
purpose of strengthening trade ties between member countries through mechanisms
such as the reduction of tariff barriers and the elimination of legal obstacles (Romero
et al, 2019) in addition, political and legal aspects from a multifunctional facet.
According to Malamud (2013), regionalism processes in South America have their own
argumentation, aim at ambitious results and generate economic interests.
However, the economic crises that occurred in the period from 1950 to 1980
(Chiriboga, 2009) and with the implementation of the Latin American economic
model called "import substitution industrialization" proposed by the Economic
Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean - ECLAC, caused the failure of
unifications such as LAFTA and a slow process in the implementation of integration
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agreements such as the Andean Community - CAN, Southern Common Market -
MERCOSUR, ALADI, CARICOM, among other supranational organizations
(Malamud, 2011).
According to Liévano, J. A. B. (2021), it is crucial to develop specific correlations in the
indicators of the financial axes, as this underlies the administrative model that allows
consolidating a net profit margin from the business application. In this context, the
Andean Community, created on May 25, 1969 through the Cartagena Agreement
(Correa and Casas, 2007), although preceded by the Declaration of Bogota in 1963
resulting in the Andean Pact, is one of the oldest integration processes in South
America and still remains in force in the international scenario, despite the fact that
some founding countries (Chile and Venezuela) withdrew in recent decades in the
midst of its crisis (Blanco, 2014; Godoy and Gonzalez, 2010).
As mentioned on its official website, this organization has 4 member countries
(Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru), 5 associate countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile,
Paraguay, Uruguay), and one observer country (Spain). At present, the CAN enacts as
its objectives (Andean Community, 2020a):
TO PROMOTE the balanced and harmonious development of the Member Countries
under conditions of equity, through integration and economic and social cooperation.
ACCELERATE growth and the generation of productive employment for the
inhabitants of the Member Countries.
FACILITATE the participation of Member Countries in the regional integration
process, with a view to the gradual formation of a Latin American common market.
DECREASE external vulnerability and improve the position of Member Countries in
the international economic context.
STRENGTHENING subregional solidarity and reducing development gaps among
Member Countries.
To bring about a persistent improvement in the standard of living of the sub-region's
inhabitants.
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Pursuant to Article 5 of the Cartagena Agreement, the Andean Community is
comprised of the Member States and the bodies of the Andean Integration System, the
latter being composed of the Andean Presidential Council; the Andean Council of
Foreign Ministers; the Andean Community Commission; the General Secretariat of
the Andean Community; the Court of Justice of the Andean Community; the Andean
Parliament; the Business Advisory Council; the Labor Advisory Council; the Andean
Development Corporation; the Latin American Reserve Fund; the Simón Rodríguez
Agreement, the social agreements that are attached to the Andean Integration System,
the Simón Bolívar Andean University, the Advisory Councils established by the
Commission and the other bodies and institutions that may be created within the
framework of Andean sub-regional integration.
In this sense, the CAN has created a supraregional institutional regulatory framework
through the establishment of legal norms that can be complied with by the States and
other member countries (Gallardo et al, 2019), i.e., there are not strictly speaking
common policies, but community and implementation rules (Carrasquilla and Rivero,
2015); Among these regulations, the establishment of an Andean jurisdiction is
noteworthy, which allows citizens to go taking into account the free movement in the
territory that makes up the integration without a visa or passport; the popular election
of parliamentarians to the bloc and a Dispute Settlement System.
In trade matters, the CAN established a free trade zone, a regional customs tariff with
exemption from paying tariffs for members of the community; approximately 80% of
the products traded are produced by micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in the
region that generate between 71.8% and 89.6% of employment (Heredia and Sanchez,
2016), although the trade balance is in deficit, the volume of imports and exports
among themselves have increased by more than 200% as evidenced in Figure 1
(Andean Community, 2020b), additional the regional agreement has rules that tend
to avoid double taxation and tax evasion.
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Figure 1. CAN trade balance 1969-2019 (figures in US dollars)
Source: Prepared by the authors with data from the annual report 50 years of the Andean Community of Nations 2020.
Among other regulations are air and land transportation, migration, tourism, labor
and business policies; it has guidelines that orient its Common Foreign Policy (CFP),
investment promotion, search for trade opportunities, joint action in multilateral
negotiation forums and trade approaches with other regional integrations, food
security measures, energy integration, rules on industrial property, environment,
border development (Ochoa et al 2014).
The main export destinations of the member countries, according to the 2019 annual
report, have been the United States, China, the European Union and domestic trade
among the member countries of the integration, as shown in Figure 2.
Figure 2. CAN destination markets in 2019
Source: Andean Community of Nations (2020c)
Despite the change, in institutional order since its creation, going through several
economic, political and social crises within each member state and the lack of a single
-5.000.000
0
5.000.000
10.000.000
15.000.000
1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030
EXPORTS IMPORTS BALANCE OF TRADE
Estados Unidos
21%
China
18%
Union Europea
13%
Comunidad Andina
7%
Mercosur
6%
Panamá
4%
Chile
3%
Otros
28%
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perception among the rulers (Contipelli, 2016), the Andean Community of Nations has
been able to face the challenges present in the new era of globalization and that goes
beyond being an interregional trade zone (Moncayo, 2017).
Materials and methods
In order to achieve the research objective and to be able to answer the questions posed,
a mixed approach study of documentary type is developed. The laws, decrees, and
regulations issued by the governments of the countries that are members or associates
of the Andean Community - CAN as of December 31, 2019 will be used.
We proceed to identify the parameters of business classification according to size,
under the denominations of small and medium enterprise, understanding that,
according to the quantitative variables determined by each government, if a local
enterprise presents lower values than the minimum values to be a small enterprise, it
will be understood as a micro enterprise, and if a local enterprise exceeds the
maximum values to be a medium enterprise, it will be understood as an enterprise or
large enterprise, based on the reality that all the nations of the CAN present the
classifications of micro, small, medium and enterprise or large enterprise.
In order to be able to compare the quantitative information regarding variables that
are represented in monetary units, their value will be calculated in U.S. dollars,
according to the exchange rates in effect as of December 31, 2019, reported by the
official entities of each country, among which are in the first instance the central
banks, or the local entity in charge of determining the exchange rate.
After determining the variables established by each nation subject to this study, the
information is presented in a comparative manner. As for the data relating monetary
magnitudes and the number of employees, the arithmetic mean and the standard
deviation presented in a general manner are determined through the application of
descriptive statistics, so that they can be compared independently for each nation,
based on the total information of the Community. For this study, high dispersion is
understood as that which, when measuring the relationship between the standard
deviation and the arithmetic mean, results in a value equal to or greater than one (1).
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Results
The classification according to company size is not standardized worldwide, neither in
terms of the variables to be taken into account (although sales, income, assets, and
number of workers are generally estimated), nor in terms of their quantification, a
phenomenon that also occurs among the CAN member and associate countries. Each
country has created its own legislation, which will surely respond to the characteristics
of its own economies and local needs and particularities. The following are the
classifications for the nine countries that belong to the Andean Community, with
respect to the parameters they have determined for small and medium-sized
enterprises.
Argentina
• Legislation: Resolution 220/2019, Annex IV of the Secretariat of Entrepreneurs and
SMEs of the Ministry of Production.
• Classification variables and magnitudes: Sector, number of workers, annual sales.
Table 1 illustrates what has been established for the country.
Table 1. Business classification by size - Argentina
Sector and classification
variables
Small
Median
Tranche I
Construction
No. of
employees
Between 13
and 45
Between 46 and
200
Annual
sales ARS1
Between
12,710,001
and
75,380,000
Between
75,380,001 and
420.570.000
Conversion
to USD2
Between
212,223 and
1,258,640
Between
1,258,641 and
7,022,374
Services
No. of
employees
Between 8
and 30
Between 31 and
165
Annual
sales ARS
Between
6,700,000
and
40.410.000
Between
$40,410,001
and
$337,200,000
1
Argentine peso.
2
The exchange rate as of December 31, 2019 according to the Central Bank of Argentina is taken. USD/ARS = 59.89 ARS.
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Conversion
to USD
Between
111,872 and
674,737
Between
674,738 and
5,630,322
Trade
No. of
employees
Between 8
and 35
Between 36 and
125
Annual
sales ARS
Between
$23,560,001
and
141,680,000
Between
141,680,001
and
1.190.400.000
Conversion
to USD
Between
393,388 and
2,365,670
Between
2,365,671 and
19,476,440
Industry and
mining
No. of
employees
Between 16
and 60
Between 61 and
235
Annual
sales ARS
Between
21,990,001
and
157.740.000
Between
157,740,001
and
986.080.000
Conversion
to USD
Between
367,173 and
2,633,828
Between
2,633,829 and
16,464,852
Agropecuario
No. of
employees
Between 6
and 10
Between 11 and
50
Annual
sales ARS
Between
10,150,000
and
38.180.000
Between
38,180,001
y 272.020.000
Conversion
to USD
Between
169,477 and
637,502
Between
637,503 and
4,541,993
Bolivia
• Legislation: Ministerial Resolution MDPyEP/200/2009, regulation for the
registration and accreditation of productive units of the Ministry of Productive
Development and Plural Economy in Bolivia. However, this was modified by
Ministerial Resolution 064 of April 01, 2015.
• Classification variables and magnitudes: number of workers, productive assets, annual
exports, annual sales. Table 2 illustrates what has been established for the country.
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Table 2. Business classification by size - Bolivia
Classification
variable
Small
Medium Company
No. of employees
Between 10 and 19
Between 20 and 49
Productive assets in
UFV3
Between $150,001 and
1,500,000
Between 1,500,001 and
2,039,536
Conversion to USD4
Between 50988 and
509.884
Between 509,885 and
1,928,397
Annual exports in
UFV
Between 75,001 and
750,000
Between 750,001 and
7,500,000
Conversion to USD
Between 25,494 and
254,942
Between 254,942 and
2,549,420
Annual sales in UFV
Between 600,001 and
3,000,000
Between 3,000,001 and
12,000,000
Conversion to USD
Between 203,953 and
1,019,768
Between 1,019,769 and
4,079,072
Source: Adapted from Ministerial Resolution MDPyEP/200/2009 of the Ministry of
Productive Development and Plural Economy. Plurinational State of Bolivia.
Brazil
• Legislation: Supplementary Law number 123 of December 14, 2006.
• Classification variables and magnitudes: number of workers, annual sales. Table 3
illustrates what has been established for the country.
Table 3. Business classification by size - Brazil
Classification
variable
Small
Median
No. of employees
Industry and Civil
Construction: between 20
and 99
Industry and Civil
Construction: between 100
and 499
Trade and services:
between 10 and 49
Trade and services: between
50 and 99
Annual Sales in
BRL5
240,000 and less than
2,400,000
N. A
Conversion to
USD6
Between 59,551 and
595,518
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Source: Adapted from Complementary Law 123 of 2006, Presidency of Brazil.
Chile
• Legislation: Law No. 20416 of the Ministry of Economy, Development and
Reconstruction of Chile.
• Classification variables and magnitudes: number of workers, annual sales. Table 4
illustrates what has been established for the country.
Table 4. Business classification by size - Chile
Classification
variable
Small
Median
No. of employees
Between 10 and 49
Between 50 and 200
Annual sales UF7
Between 2,401 and
25,000
Between 25,001 and
100,000
USD Conversion8
Between 85,267 and
887,834
Between 887,834 and
3,551,337
Colombia
• Legislation: Decree No. 957 of June 5, 2019 of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and
Tourism, which regulates Article 2 of Law 590 of 2000, as amended by Article 43 of
Law 1450 of 2011.
• Classification variables and magnitudes: sector, number of workers, income from
ordinary activities. Table 5 illustrates what has been established for the country.
Table 5. Business classification by size - Colombia
Sector
Classification
variable
Small
Median
No. of workers (for all)
Between 11 and
50
Between 51 and
200
Manufacturer
Annual revenues from
ordinary activities
measured in UVT 9
Between 23,563
and less than or
equal to 204,995.
Greater than
204,995 and less
than or equal to
1,736,565.
USD Conversion10
Between 246,405
and less than or
Greater than
2,143,619 and less
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equal to
2,143,619.
than or equal to
18,159,762
Services
Annual revenues from
ordinary activities
measured in UVT
Between 32,988
and less than or
equal to 131,951.
Greater than
131,951 and less
than or equal to
483,034.
USD Conversion
Between 344,965
and less than or
equal to
1,379,849.
Greater than
1,379,849 and less
than or equal to
5,051,226
Trade
Annual revenues from
ordinary activities
measured in UVT
Between 44,769
and less than or
equal to 431,196.
Greater than
431,196 and less
than or equal to
2,160,692.
USD Conversion
Between 468,162
and less than or
equal to
4,509,141.
More than
4,509,141 and less
than or equal to
22,594,980
Ecuador
• Legislation: Organic Code of Production, Commerce and Investments.
• Classification variables and magnitudes: number of workers, annual sales, amount of
assets. Table 6 illustrates what has been established for the country.
Table 6. Business classification by size - Ecuador
Criteria
Small
Medium Company
No. of employees
Between 10 and 49
Between 50 and 199
Annual sales USD11
Between 100,001
and 1'000,000
Between 1'000.001 and
5'000.000
Amount of assets
USD
100,001 to 750,000
750,001 up to 3,999,999
Paraguay
• Legislation: Law No. 4457 / 12 for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises
(MSMEs).
• Classification variables and magnitudes: number of workers, annual sales. Table 7
illustrates what has been established for the country.
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Table 7. Business classification by size - Paraguay
Classification
variable
Small
Median
No. of
employees
Between 16 and 30
Between 31 and 50
Annual sales
PYG12
More than 500,000,000,000
and up to 2,500,000,000,000
Over 2,500,000,000,000 and
up to 6,000,000,000,000
Conversion to
USD13
More than 77,481 and up to
387,408
More than 387,408 and up to
929,780
Peru
• Legislation: Law to Promote Productive Development and Business Growth Supreme
Decree No. 013-2013-PRODUCE
• Classification variables and magnitudes: annual sales. Table 8 illustrates what has
been established for the country.
Table 8. Business classification by size - Peru
Classification
variable
Small
Median
Annual sales in
ITU14
Over 150 and up to 1,700
Over 1700 and up to 2300
Conversion to
USD15
More than 190,217 and up to
2,155,797
More than 2,155,797 up to
2,916,667
Uruguay
• Legislation: Law 201 of August 13, 1991, which is determined in Decree No. 54/992 as
subsequently amended by Decree No. 504/2007.
• Classification variables and magnitudes: number of workers, annual sales. Table 9
illustrates what has been established for the country.
Table 9. Business classification by size - Uruguay
Classification
variable
Small
Median
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No. of
employees
Between 5 and 19
Between 20 and 99
Annual sales in
UI16
Annual sales excluding VAT
between 2,000,000 and
10,000,000
Annual sales excluding VAT,
greater than 10,000,000 and
75,000,000
Conversion to
USD17
Between 243,014 and
1,170,070
Greater than 1,170,070 and
greater than 8,775,530
Source: Adapted from Law 16.201, Decree 54/992 and 266/995. Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mining
Comparison between classifications
Each country that is part of the Andean Community, either as a member or associate
member, has stipulated quantitative variables for business classification according to
the size of the productive unit. Overall, the variables applied do not coincide in all
cases, which reflects the difference in the understanding of the size of the company,
not to mention the asymmetry in the quantification measures applied.
The following is a summary of three comparative tables, which illustrate from
different angles the dynamics of the Community to classify companies according to
their size, according to the legislation or regulations in force as of December 31, 2019.
Table 10. Variables used by the CAN countries to classify companies according to
size
Country
Variables
Assets
Annual
exports
Annual
sales
revenue
No. of
employees
Economic
sector
Argentina
X
X
x
Bolivia
x
X
X
X
Brazil
X
X
x
Chile
X
X
Colombia
X
X
x
Ecuador
X
X
Paraguay
X
X
Peru
X
Uruguay
X
X
Table 10 presents the variables taken into account by the countries. It shows that all of
them include annual sales revenue in their particular business size classification
systems. It also shows that 89% of these countries include the variable of number of
workers. Differentially, only three countries (Argentina, Brazil and Colombia)
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differentiate between economic sectors and only Bolivia considers variables such as
assets and annual exports in addition to annual sales revenue and number of workers.
Finally, the only country that only considers one variable is Peru.
Regarding annual revenues received from sales, the CAN countries set minimum and
maximum amounts for company size classifications. In a standardized manner, Table
11 presents the values specified by each nation, presented in U.S. dollars (USD) as of
December 31, 2019.
Table 11. Annual sales revenue CAN countries to classify companies by size
Country
Annual sales revenue - Figures in USD
Small business
Medium-sized company
Minimum
amount
Maximum
amount
Minimum
amount
Maximum
amount
Argentina
250.827
1.514.075
1.514.076
15.650.325
Bolivia
203.953
1.019.768
1.019.769
4.079.072
Brazil
59.551
595.518
Chile
85.267
887.834
887.834
3.551.337
Colombia
353.177
2.677.536
2.677.536
15.268.656
Ecuador
100.001
750.000
750.001
3.999.999
Paraguay
77.481
387.408
387.408
929.780
Peru
190.217
2.155.797
2.155.797
2.916.667
Uruguay
243.014
1.170.070
1.170.070
8.775.530
Average
173.721
1.239.779
1.320.311
6.896.421
Standard
deviation
99.808
753.334
762.809
5.722.284
As can be seen, the average minimum and maximum amounts for the classification of
companies range on average between USD 173,721 and USD 1,239,779 for small companies,
between USD 1,320,311 and USD 6,896,421 for medium-sized companies, less than USD
173,721 for micro-enterprises and more than USD 6,896,421 for large companies. In all cases,
the standard deviation of the average does not exceed the absolute value of the minimum and
maximum averages of the CAN countries; however, in all cases this deviation exceeds 50% of
the average.
In general terms, Colombia has the highest values or ceilings for the classifications, both in
minimum and maximum amounts, exceeding the mean in all cases, although in the maximum
value for classifying the median, Colombia has the highest value for classifying the median.
This phenomenon is explained by the fact that Argentina has two levels of
classification within the medium-sized enterprise category. The lowest values or
ceilings are found in Brazil, with values below the average (in terms of the small
enterprise classification), and Paraguay.
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Finally, with respect to the number of workers variable, which is applied by eight of
the nine CAN member and associate countries, there is diversity in its quantification,
as shown in Table 12.
Table 12. Number of workers CAN countries to classify companies according to size
Country
Number of employees
Small business
Medium-sized company
Minimum
Maximum
Minimum
Maximum
Argentina
468
Bolivia
Brazil
299
Chile
Colombia
Ecuador
Paraguay
Uruguay
5
99
Average
42
Standard deviation
It can be seen that for the CAN countries that consider the variable of number of
workers to classify companies according to their size, that, on average, micro
companies are those with fewer than 11 workers, small companies have an average of
between 11 and 41 workers, medium companies have an average of between 42 and
196 workers, and large companies have more than 196 workers. With respect to
standard deviations, there is no evidence that the average exceeds the absolute value
of the minimum and maximum averages of the Community countries for the number
of workers variable; however, in all cases this deviation exceeds 50% of the average.
Regarding the dynamics of minimum and maximum values for the business
classification by size, for the variable of number of workers, Uruguay is the country
with the lowest values, followed by Paraguay. On the other hand, Brazil has the highest
values, being surpassed only by Argentina in the ratio of maximum ceiling for the
classification of medium-sized enterprises, a phenomenon that is explained by the fact
that this country has two levels of classification within the denomination of medium-
sized enterprise.
Conclusions
In 2020, it is evident that the Andean Community has been in operation for more than
50 years, and that in the midst of the various difficulties faced by the hemisphere, it
has endured over time. This organization has generated an institutional regulatory
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framework in the form of community norms and not common policies, which can be
complied with by its member states.
Within this framework, the citizens of the member and associate countries enjoy free
movement within their territories and, at the business level, the advantage of lower
tariffs thanks to the establishment of a free trade zone with benefits for its members.
With regard to the research objective and the questions posed, it was found that the
internal legislation or regulations of the CAN countries unanimously include the
variable of annual sales revenue, and that, of the nine members or associates, eight of
them (89%) include the variable of number of workers. In addition, the countries of
Argentina, Brazil and Colombia differentiate by economic sector. As an exceptional
case, Bolivia includes other variables, which are amount of assets and annual exports.
On the other hand, regarding the asymmetry presented by the CAN countries in terms
of the quantification of the variables applied for the business classification, it was
identified that the dispersion measured through the standard deviation of the means
of each variable analyzed did not exceed 100% of the value of the mean in any case,
which leads to the conclusion that the dispersion, given the conditions of the
differences between nations, is not high, considering that the relationship between the
standard deviation and the arithmetic mean is less than 1.
Finally, we propose as new research topics the characterization of the business fabric
of each country belonging to the CAN, where points such as the component of the
business park in terms of size, employment generation, economic sector, and
contribution to the GDP of each country and the Community are addressed, as well as
the evaluation of the effectiveness of internal policies for the promotion and
strengthening of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.
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