HOT NEWS AND INFOS

The Nigerian President, Goodluck Jonathan, has flagged off the disbursement of the 220billion Naira Micro, Small And Medium Enterprises Development Fund designed to address the challenges of limited access to finance and poor infrastructure in the country.
Addressing the 8th annual MSME Finance Conference and Entrepreneurship Award before flagging off the disbursement, the President expressed optimism that with what has been put in place by the CBN, the Ministry of Petroleum, Ministry of Power and the National Electricity Regulation Agency, Nigeria’s power generation capacity would soon increase to 5,000 megawatts.
He observed that inadequate infrastructure increases the cost of production and promised that his administration would continue to invest heavily in infrastructure development to stem the challenges.
The seed capital of 220billion Naira is being injected by the Central Bank of Nigeria, and the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, explained that 60% of this has been set aside for women to access. State governments and economically active persons with disabilities would also access the fund.
Participating financial institutions, state governments as well as Nigerians who are engaged in micro, small and medium enterprises converged on the Federal Capital Territory for the event, during which they decried a situation where a sector recognized as the engine of economic development has not been allowed to play this role effectively.
However, the Federal Government expressed optimism that many of the entrepreneurs would join the trend, access the fund and get the opportunity to be among those who would live a better and productive life.
A major highlight of the event was the presentation of awards to some state governments that are outstandingly supporting the development of SMEs in their states, Best National Farmer of the Year, Best Performing Bankers of the Year, and Best SMEs of the Year.