COMMUNITY ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT THROUGH SMEs: A BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS OF GLOBAL RESEARCH TRENDS 2022–2026

Abstract

This study aims to map global research trends on community economic empowerment through Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) using a bibliometric analysis approach. Data were obtained from the Scopus database comprising 102 unique articles published between 2022 and 2026. The analysis encompasses publication distribution by year, most-cited documents, countries with the highest productivity, dominant research themes, and mapping of the most frequently appearing keywords. Results indicate a significant surge in publications during 2025–2026, with dominant themes including women's economic empowerment, SME digitalization, sustainability, and financial inclusion. India and China emerged as the most productive countries, contributing 28 and 22 articles respectively. This study provides a comprehensive overview of the research landscape in economic empowerment and serves as a guide for researchers in identifying relevant research gaps for future investigation.