• APC chieftain tasks President on N200b fund for MSMEs, manufacturers
Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) is collaborating with the House of Representatives to facilitate commerce and trade, as well as drive economic growth and development in the country.
NACCIMA President, Dele Oye, with the Ahmed Munir-led House Committee on Commerce during a stakeholders’ interactive session in Abuja. The meeting marked the commencement of a series of dialogues aimed at propelling the commerce and trade sector forward.
In his address, Munir delineated the committee’s scope, encompassing the oversight of various governmental sectors, including industry, trade and consumer protection. He emphasised the current administration’s commitment to enacting and revising laws and policies vital for the nation’s economic rejuvenation, reaffirming that the committee is set to deploy every legislative tool to make a tangible impact.
On his part, Oye introduced the association as Nigeria’s premier business network, canvassing policies conducive to economic prosperity, citing the successful collaboration between governments and chambers of commerce in countries such as Germany, Singapore and the United States, which has been instrumental in achieving high rankings on the Ease of Doing Business Index.
The NACCIMA boss, who thanked the House of Representatives for its societal role, proposed key legislative actions to enhance Nigeria’s economic landscape, including tax law reformation, which entails emulating New Zealand’s simple tax system to encourage compliance and attract investments and business facilitation, involving the replication of Rwanda’s reforms to improve ease of doing business through efficient company registration and permitting processes.
He also highlighted the need for regulatory reform, learning from Canada’s efforts to align regulations across sectors to reduce business costs; skills and capacity-building which entails investing in education and training programmes, taking cues from Finland’s approach; public-private partnerships, including leveraging successful models from Australia to combine private sector efficiency with public sector support and intellectual property protection which involves ensuring robust IP protection to foster innovation, similar to the United States model.
Oye stressed that with these legislative measures, Nigeria could become an African industrial, trade and commerce powerhouse, asserting NACCIMA’s readiness to work closely with the National Assembly to ensure the nation’s prosperity and its people’s well-being.
Responding to NACCIMA’s presentation, the committee suggested the organisation of workshops with relevant agencies to raise awareness among the public and businesses.
In a related development, All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain, Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to monitor the distribution of the N200 billion presidential intervention fund recently launched for Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs) and manufacturers in the country.
Addressing newsmen yesterday in Osogbo, Oyintiloye said that the appeal has become necessary for the fund to achieve its targeted purpose. He recalled that the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Doris Uzoka-Anite, announced the launch of the N200 billion presidential intervention fund for MSMEs and manufacturers.
According to Uzoka-Anite, N75 billion would be distributed to MSMEs while another N75 billion would go to the manufacturing industry under the fund.
Oyintiloye, who noted that the fund must be protected from being siphoned into private pockets, reiterated that strategies must be put in place to ensure that the different intervention programmes of the President have positive impacts on the lives of Nigerians.
He urged Tinubu to set up a monitoring team to ensure that the process was not sabotaged. Oyintiloye, however, commended the President for the launch of the intervention fund, adding that it would boost economic growth and industrial development at all levels.
