19 MSMEs development partners comprising key actors from the public and private sectors have been formally presented to Vice President Kashim Shettima at the Presidential Villa.
A meeting with the Vice President and Chief Executive Officers of the 19 Public and Private Sector Agencies saddled with the task of Job Creation and promotion of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises in Nigeria was held on Friday, November 10, 2023, at the Presidential Villa.
The meeting was also aimed at appreciating the efforts and
enthusiasm of the Vice President towards the development, support, and growth of MSMEs and job creation in Nigeria.
The stakeholders were led by the Director-General/Chief Executive Officer of Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN),Mr. Charles Odii.
They noted that, in view of the difficulties Nigeria is facing, an array of incentives are being put in place by the federal government to create more job opportunities.
The stakeholders therefore proposed, amongst others, that the National Council on MSMEs be formally inaugurated to enable critical stakeholders to contribute to the growth and development of MSMEs and create jobs in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
They also urged the federal government to prevail on state governments to replicate and inaugurate state councils on MSMEs in their respective states.
The launch of all the ONE
STOP-SHOP facilities ready for commissioning in Nigeria should be given due consideration, the stakeholders urged.
Responding, Vice President Kashim Shettima expressed confidence in the capacity of the stakeholders, whom he described as very competent in their respective fields.
He therefore said that his hope was further rekindled in view of the commitment on the part of the partners.
He revealed that one of the Nigerian banks had, after extensive discussions offered to provide N30 billion in loan support to MSMEs, focusing mostly on youth and women empowerment programmes, at 15% interest.
He therefore charged other private sector players and financial institutions to emulate the good example shown by the bank to support 700,000 micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in line with President Tinubu’s renewed hope agenda.
While speaking on the enormous potential of Nigerian youth, Vice President Shettima applauded the efforts of Amal Hassan, a leading Nigerian technopreneur with diverse interests across technology and innovation that led to the creation of 1,500 jobs for young men and women in Kano through her ICT Training Institute.
Meanwhile, Vice President Kashim Shettima has described as legendary the ascension of the Registrar-General/CEO of the CAC, Hussaini Ishaq Magaji,SAN to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria at the age of 38.
Vice President Shettima stated this while congratulating the CAC Helmsman on his recent appointment.
He said such a rare feat was commendable as such a coveted position was synonymous with legal personnel that distinguished themselves through immense contribution to the development of the legal profession in Nigeria.
CAC News reports that during the meeting, the Registrar-General held sideline discussions with the Chief Executives of SMEDAN, BOA, and NITDA on the need to foster closer collaboration between them.
