The Federal Government has availed Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and the manufacturing sectors of N200 billion to create more job opportunities in the country.
Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Nura Rimi, disclosed this in a message at a capacity building for MSMEs in the North Central held in Lokoja, Kogi State.
Represented by Mohammed Ismaila, the permanent secretary said the money would be accessed by small business owners with a single digit interest loan to help them expand their businesses and create wealth.
The Federal Government, he said, has also commenced the licensing of Business Development Service Provider (BDSPs), based on a new certification and accreditation framework to equally standardise the delivery of Business Development Service (BDS) in the country.
He said the workshop also provided an opportunity for networking to cross-fertilise ideas to grow businesses, which will lead to the overall growth of the MSME ecosystem and the country’s economy as a whole.
The permanent secretary listed some of government’s past interventions to include Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP), Agribusiness Small and Medium Enterprises Investment Scheme (AGSMEIS), N10b National Enterprise Development (NEDEP) Fund also known as the Federal Government of Nigeria Special Intervention Fund for MSMEs.
Director, Industrial Development Department of the Ministry, Muhammad Bala, represented by Alkali Samuel, described MSMEs’ development as the fulcrum of industrialisation and its subsequent economic growth; hence, the commitment of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu to the sector.
Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, represented by the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Kogi Enterprises Development Agency (KEDA), Rekiya Onaivo, pledged the commitment of his government and the agency to domesticate the training across the state to achieve set goals for the benefit of SMEs.
