The Enterprise Development Center (EDC) of the Pan Atlantic University has collaborated with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), and Kaduna Business School to strengthen the capacity of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the agriculture sector and Business Development Services Providers (BDSP) in Nigeria.

This was made known at the recently held EDC’s AG-SME Bootcamp and pitch competition, a three-day, fully sponsored intensive Enterprise Development Centre programme for agric SMEs across the country.  The event, held in Lagos, aimed to strengthen Agric-SMEs, deepen Business Development Service Provider (BDSP) linkages, and improve access to finance for young entrepreneurs.

Addressing business owners and entrepreneurs at the programme, Dr. Nnenna Ugwu, Head of Alumni Relations and Support Services, and a member of the management board of EDC, said: “We want to watch great entrepreneurs who have applied for this AG-SMEs empowerment programme. Those who win will each receive a grant of one million Naira to boost their businesses.

“They have gone through the Bootcamp, and shared fantastic business ideas, and also showed that incredible people are playing in the agric space with innovative ways of doing business. So, that’s practically why we are here, to select the best from the best.”
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Speaking on the impact of the partnership with other relevant organisations in the SME ecosystem, Dr. Stanley Ibeku, Lead, Research, Monitoring & Evaluation at the Enterprise Development Centre of the Pan-Atlantic University, said: “We are here because the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Enterprise Development  Centre, (EDC) of the Pan Atlantic University, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), and Kaduna Business School (KBS), have come together to strengthen the capacity of agric SMEs so that they access available financing as well as have that capacity to grow and scale their businesses.”

Revealing the winners of the grant, Ibeku said: “We have eight grant winners, and the cash grant of N1 million each to the eight SMEs,” adding that “We’ll also be providing business development support where we will engage business consultants who will work with these agric SMEs for three months, free of charge, courtesy of the project. These business development consultants will then help them to be able to take their businesses to the next level,” he said.

One of the beneficiaries, Ms. Damilola Awojobi, CEO of Dainty Foods, who lauded the project, said: “It has been impactful. I would say it’s been eye-opening, those two words particularly, because my eyes were brought to see things again that I had formerly neglected as a business owner.”

Another beneficiary, Dale Junaid, said: “It has been an amazing experience. Meeting some facilitators who took us on personal finance, access to finance, management, and bookkeeping was enlightening. I have personally learned a couple of things that would improve my business going forward.”