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SMEDAN key to economic development – Osinbajo

By on September 5, 2015

The Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, on Thursday said promotion of small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs)  was one surest way of achieving economic development.
The vice-president said this at a meeting with the officials of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) in Abuja led by the Director-General, Alhaji Bature Masari.

Osinbajo said a well-structured small and medium scale industry was the way to go if the Nigerian economy must be developed and catch up with the advanced world.
He said: “It is when people are able to do things for themselves, that is when we can say we are developed. No country develops without vibrant small and medium enterprises. It is the base for commerce and industry. We need to scale up. We must design a strategy that allows us to create an impact with the people. This is what the big nations of the world are doing.”

According to him,   there was a need to refocus and make the SMEs people-oriented in planning and execution.

He said: “Naturally, Nigerians have commercial inclination. The problem is the absence of capacity building. People have ideas, but cannot execute these ideas, some are even lacking in bookkeeping.

“We need to focus on the underserved, so that a robust economy can be created. We have 110 million extremely poor people in Nigeria. Take a look at the artisans. We can give them vocational training, which can lead to a certification process and in turn improve their businesses and lives. After which, they can hire more hands and get others out of poverty as well. We need people-oriented focus.”

According to him, the Informal Sector is huge adding that “if we can focus on the market women, for instance, and help them build their businesses by training them and arming them with basic business skills, there will be impact, and a positive effect on their value chain.”

He also noted that by directly impacting women, whom he said were prudent, the entire community would benefit immensely.

Earlier, the DG of the agency, Masari had said  that many plans were drawn by SMEDAN to attract more investment and funding to the SMEs.

He however stated that one of their frustrations was advising the past administrations to set aside certain taxes on imported items to be used to fund local SMEs.

He also said despite the agency encouraging entrepreneurs to register cooperatives, the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Bank of Industry would always insist on the existence of conventional conditions of providing collateral before giving loans rejecting the cooperative lending model practiced in several other nations.

Meanwhile, the vice-president also received the executive members of the Northern Reawakening Forum, led by its chairman, Hon. Mohammed Kumalia.
The forum leaders said that their visit to the vice president was based on his deep concern for the victims of the insurgency in the North East whom he had visited and interacted with.

 

[ThisDay]