Vice President Kashim Shettima has directed the expansion of the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Stakeholders’ Meeting to give business owners a stronger voice in government policies and decisions.
He also ordered that the forum meets quarterly with each session reviewing decisions taken at the previous meeting to ensure accountability and progress.
Shettima issued the directives yesterday during the MSMEs stakeholders’ meeting at the State House Abuja where he called for closer collaboration between government and the private sector to support enterprise growth.
Commending the Special Adviser to the President on MSMEs and Job Creation Mr Temitola Adekunle-Johnson for his commitment to the sector the Vice President said business owners must participate meaningfully in deliberations affecting their livelihoods.
‘I therefore direct him to expand this forum’s membership and convene this meeting once every quarter. Business owners must have a more decisive voice in our deliberations and each meeting must account for the decisions taken at the previous one’ he said.
According to a statement issued by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications Office of the Vice President Stanley Nkwocha Shettima said the importance of small businesses extended beyond their owners with millions of households depending on them for education healthcare and employment.
‘The smallest shop on a Nigerian street may carry the weight of an entire household.
‘Behind its counter are school fees a parent’s medicine and an apprentice’s first chance at independence. Whenever that shop closes the loss travels far beyond its owner. Whenever it grows a little more of our country stands on its own feet’ he said.
The Vice President reaffirmed the administration’s commitment to making MSMEs a national priority acknowledging the contributions of government agencies financial institutions state governments and private sector partners in translating public commitments into practical assistance.
‘We do this because millions of Nigerians earn their living from businesses that survive and those businesses survive more readily when institutions perform their duties’ he said.
Shettima said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had placed business financing at the centre of his economic agenda recognising that entrepreneurs needed access to capital to turn their ambitions into productive ventures.
‘The woman who can fulfil a larger order and the artisan who can afford better equipment are helping to build the economy we seek. We know that the cost of staying in business has tested even the most resourceful Nigerians. Their perseverance places an obligation upon us’ he said.
He highlighted the President’s approval of ?200 billion in business support comprising ?50 billion in grants ?75 billion in loans for MSMEs and ?75 billion for manufacturing.
Under the interventions eligible manufacturers can access up to ?1 billion through the Bank of Industry he said adding that the support was intended to help enterprises withstand economic pressures and expand.
Shettima also recalled the MSMEs team’s engagements across states saying they demonstrated the administration’s determination to honour its commitments to business owners.
Earlier Minister of State for Industry Trade and Investment Senator John Owan-Enoh called for sustained support for small businesses describing their activities as central to Nigeria’s economy.
‘These are people who run businesses that we see every day. It goes beyond MSMEs being the engine room of the economy; they are the Nigerian economy’ he said.
The minister commended Tinubu for establishing the Directorate of Manufacturing and MSME Sector Mobilisation in the All Progressives Congress (APC) 2027 Presidential Campaign Council describing it as recognition of the sectors’ strategic importance.
Adekunle-Johnson attributed achievements in the MSME sector to productive partnerships between government and stakeholders. He assured associations cooperatives and business groups of continued support particularly in accessing affordable finance and modern production facilities.
In separate remarks the heads of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria Mr Charles Odii; Nigerian Export Promotion Council Mrs Nonye Ayeni; Nigeria Export Import Bank Mr Abba Bello; and Industrial Training Fund Dr. Afiz Oluwatoyin Ogun pledged to deepen their agencies’ interventions.
They said further support was planned in training capacity building market access affordable finance grants and production equipment.
The President of the Association of Women in Textile and Garments Hauwa Abubakar appealed for improved financing training and access to international markets to enable women entrepreneurs to expand and employ more people.
‘Women are determined and have the skills to run their businesses create jobs and contribute to the economy but most women in my association face challenges with training funding access to international markets and engagement with relevant stakeholders’ she said.
Also speaking the President of the National Association of Small Scale Industrialists Solomon Daniel Vongfa urged the government to strengthen engagement with small businesses and expand targeted interventions.
‘Because of the numerical strength of MSMEs we need more government support. We are very relevant and the government must make deliberate efforts to strengthen this sector for the country to attain its full industrial potential’ he said.