President Goodluck Jonathan said the Federal Government would
establish a wholesale Development Finance Institution (DFI) to provide
long-term funds for industrial development. Creating a vibrant
industrial sector has been a major focus of the President's
Transformation Agenda since inception in 2011.
Jonathan stated this at the launch of the disbursement of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s N220 billion funds for the development of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the country. The fund’s disbursement was the highpoint of the CBN’s 8th Annual MSME Finance Conference and Entrepreneurship Awards with the theme, ``MSME Financing in Nigeria: Past, Present and Future.’’
According to the President, the proposed institution was part of measures to enhance the contribution of MSMEs to the country’s economic growth and development. The DFI will provide long-term finance spanning up to 15 years for relevant entrepreneurs and industrialists, especially people involved in tree crop production. Jonathan also disclosed plans by the federal government to restructure existing DFIs for better performance and improved access to finance by MSMEs.
The President stated, "MSMEs are recognised all over the world as engine of growth in any development oriented economy. Besides their inherent labour intensive production processes, they also provide a viable platform for job creation globally. All over the developed world the contributions of MSMEs to GDP (Gross Domestic Product) average about 47 per cent; this shows clearly how important MSMEs are to us. As reported by SMEDAN (Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria); there are about 17.3 million SMEs in Nigeria. However, this is quite small compared to countries like Indonesia that is slightly more than us in terms of population, but they have about 40 million. So, we must also get there and even go beyond."
Jonathan presented a N500 million cheque to Gov Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta and N260 million to his Akwa Ibom counterpart Godswill Akpabio, as their states’ share of the fund. The representatives of LAPO Micro-Finance Bank and Grassroots Micro-Finance received a cheque of N100 million and N9.9 million respectively from the President.
Developing small business and industry is part of President Jonathan's efforts to move Nigeria forward.
Jonathan stated this at the launch of the disbursement of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s N220 billion funds for the development of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the country. The fund’s disbursement was the highpoint of the CBN’s 8th Annual MSME Finance Conference and Entrepreneurship Awards with the theme, ``MSME Financing in Nigeria: Past, Present and Future.’’
According to the President, the proposed institution was part of measures to enhance the contribution of MSMEs to the country’s economic growth and development. The DFI will provide long-term finance spanning up to 15 years for relevant entrepreneurs and industrialists, especially people involved in tree crop production. Jonathan also disclosed plans by the federal government to restructure existing DFIs for better performance and improved access to finance by MSMEs.
The President stated, "MSMEs are recognised all over the world as engine of growth in any development oriented economy. Besides their inherent labour intensive production processes, they also provide a viable platform for job creation globally. All over the developed world the contributions of MSMEs to GDP (Gross Domestic Product) average about 47 per cent; this shows clearly how important MSMEs are to us. As reported by SMEDAN (Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria); there are about 17.3 million SMEs in Nigeria. However, this is quite small compared to countries like Indonesia that is slightly more than us in terms of population, but they have about 40 million. So, we must also get there and even go beyond."
Jonathan presented a N500 million cheque to Gov Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta and N260 million to his Akwa Ibom counterpart Godswill Akpabio, as their states’ share of the fund. The representatives of LAPO Micro-Finance Bank and Grassroots Micro-Finance received a cheque of N100 million and N9.9 million respectively from the President.
Developing small business and industry is part of President Jonathan's efforts to move Nigeria forward.
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