The President Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government has disclosed that it has disbursed over N56 billion to the drivers of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria, out of the N75 billion survival fund earmarked to energize the sector by President Muhammadu Buhari.
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Industry, trade and investment, Dr Evelyn Ngige who disclosed this on Monday while speaking at the opening of the 13th meeting of the National Council on Industry, Trade and Investment in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti state capital, said the scheme was targeted at strengthening ordinary Nigerians and reduce the poverty index to the nearest minimal.
The summit has as theme, ‘Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development in Nigeria: The Roles of Stakeholders.’
According to her, “On the N75 billion MSME Survival Fund, the programme has disbursed 8.80bn to 293,336 beneficiaries under the Artisan Support & Transport Scheme, N43.92bn to 459,334 beneficiaries under the Payroll Support Scheme, and N4.12 billion to 82.491 beneficiaries under the MSME Grant Scheme.
“In total, the sum of N56.84 billion has been disbursed to 835,161 beneficiaries under the MSME Survival Fund scheme.”
She added that the ministry has begun full activation of the six private sector-led Special Economic Zones of Lekki, Enyimba, Funtua, Ibom, Kano, and Benue, saying they are working through the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority, to ensure the Authority delivers the establishment of three SEZs in 2022.
In addition, she said the Ministry had “in line with the Presidential directive for the establishment of at least one Agro-Processing Zone in each of the 109 Senatorial Zones, commenced the process of collecting agro-commodities data in 16 states of Ebonyi, Plateau, Edo, Jigawa Ondo, Gombe, Abia, Benue, Osun, Sokoto, Zamfara, Enugu, Ekiti, Bauchi, Kebbi and the Bayelsa States for the first phase of the implementation.
“We are also ensuring credit access to ten million MSMEs at a single-digit rate. In the implementation of this strategic pillar of the Federal Government to reduce the rate of unemployment in the country, the Ministry through the Bank of Industry (BOI) has disbursed N15bn to 863 MSME businesses across several sectors.”
Ngige said the Ministry has actively continued to expand its collaboration with the private sector to create well-paying jobs for the Nigerian youths in fulfilment of the job creation objective of the government.
The permanent secretary revealed that “these initiatives are all geared towards Mr President’s promise of taking 100 million Nigerians out of poverty within the next 10 years.”
Speaking, the Commissioner for trade and industry in Ekiti, Mr Muyiwa Olumilua said the recent establishment of an industrial park in Otun-Ekiti was part of the programmes of the administration towards boosting the state’s economy.
Olumilua noted that stakeholders must coalesce efforts in a bid to develop the MSMEs,” which are the backbone of any emerging economy and the surest way to diversify the economy and emancipate the country from overdependence on revenue from crude oil.”
Packaged by Emmanuel Adeniran with additional reports from tribuneonlineng.com
