WATCH THE VIDEO HERE The National Council on Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) has constituted a high-level committee to interface with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and other stakeholders to enhance financing for small businesses in Nigeria. The committee was inaugurated on Tuesday during the council’s first meeting for 2025, held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. The committee is chaired by the Minister of State for Industry, Trade, and Investment, Senator John Enoh, and includes the Ministers of Science and Technology; Women Affairs; and State for Agriculture and Food Security. In addition to forming the committee, the council approved a new loan scheme for MSMEs, known as the Syndicated De-Risked Loans for Small Businesses. The initiative will be a partnership between state governments and financial institutions, aimed at providing MSMEs with access to finance at single-digit interest rates nationwide. “Some of these initiatives are laudable and will need to outlive the present administrations in the states. Regardless of political affiliations, Nigerians must be seen to be the ultimate beneficiaries of these schemes that we are trying to put in place,” Shettima said. Earlier, Temitola Adekunle-Johnson, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on MSMEs, presented the syndicated de-risked loan scheme, describing it as a transformative initiative to provide affordable and accessible loans for small businesses.
FG inaugurates committee to boost MSME financing in Nigeria, approves loan scheme
