Nigerian govt restates commitment to supporting MSMEs

Federal Government has pledged it’s commitment to supporting Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in order to create more job opportunities for the nation’s teeming youths.

The Director-General of Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (SMEDAN), Alhaji Dikko Radda, made the pledge on Tuesday in Kano during an MSME’s Support Organisation Dialogue.

Radda said the dialogue was aimed at bringing key stakeholders in the Nigerian MSME Ecosystem to discuss possible measures of moving the sector forward, in spite of the COVID–19 pandemic.

Represented by the Director Partnership and Coordination of the agency, Dr Friday Okpara, Radda said that MSME was considered as a key factor of economic transformation globally, hence much emphasis needed to be put in place with the aim of achieving the set objectives.

He maintained that the dialogue would be on issues on challenges confronting MSME development in Nigeria.

Radda said that the dialogue would also suggest ways of enhancing synergy toward MSME development, enhancing the effectiveness of federal and state governments MSME support to organisations for better service delivery among others.

In his remarks, Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje said his administration had conducted a research on the existing gaps of small and medium enterprises in Kano, which led to the establishment of the Ultramodern Dangote skills Acquisition training centre in the state.

Ganduje explained that his administration had trained over 1,000 youths, including women in Auto Mechanic with the aim of making them self reliant.

The governor who commended the Federal Government for the programme also reaffirmed his administration's commitment to empowering youths and women in the Kano.

In their separate remarks, representatives of MSMEs from Kano, Kebbi and Kaduna states applauded the federal government’s efforts for initiating the programme with a view to uplifting MSMEs in the country.