MSME, FG set to empower 1.3m businesses in 17 states, FCT
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in collaboration with other partners are set to empower 1.3 million enterprises.
The intervention was a move to complement the federal government’s efforts to diversify the economy and create more jobs in the country.
Director Information, Office of the Vice President, Olusola Abiola unveiled this in a statement on Tuesday, September 12, 2023.
“The interventions are geared towards ensuring the realisation of the Tinubu administration’s commitment to job creation and economic diversification with the MSMEs playing critical roles,” MSME and job creation unit of the vice president’s office disclosed.
It added, “The interventions that are to be completed in 17 states and FCT are shared centers for MSMEs providing 4 markets with 300 kVA solar panels and mini grids to provide 8 hours of electricity a day to 6 fashion hubs and 2 furniture Clusters.”
Other interventions included were car painting/ drying hubs and cold rooms for sea food storage, among others.
According to Olusola, vice president Kashim Shettima has ordered the speedy execution of the projects, stating that five of the interventions will be completed and delivered by December 2023.
“12 other interventions are scheduled for completion before December 2024,” Shettima added.
The beneficiaries were picked across the six geo-political areas, namely Southeast (Abia, Enugu and Imo states); Southsouth (Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Bayelsa states); Southwest (Lagos, Ekiti, Ondo and Osun states), Northeast (Borno, Gombe and Yobe states); Northwest (Jigawa and Sokoto states) and Northcentral (Niger, Benue states and FCT).
MSME partners collaborating with the Office of the Vice President to execute these interventions include the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Industrial Training Fund (ITF), National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control, (NAFDAC) and Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON).
Others are Bank of Industry (BOI), Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM), Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN), Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Bank of Agriculture (BOA), Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Nigerian Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
