By Onu Okorie
The Divisional Head in charge of Services, Bank of Industry BoI, Dr Isa Omagu, says that government has earmarked a N200 billion Naira integration fund; N50 billion grant for Small and Medium Enterprises SMEs in the rural areas for growth of rural business.
Omagu disclosed this at the annual workshop of Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN) in Lagos recently.
Omagu who further explained that BoI has already disbursed up to 98 per cent of the money added that it was N50,000 per beneficiary.
According to him, “Then there is N5 billion for SMEs, it is a loan payable over a long period of time, and it is at a single rate. This is supposed to help SMEs to access funding, which is always a very key condition that you have when they are trying to do business.”
Additionally, he said; “There is a fund for one million SMEs and another one for large enterprises who are into manufacturing. The Funds are given at a single digit rate, up to seven years period, which will enable them to bring in equipment to be able to do their business.
“Hopefully, all these initiatives will grow employment, minimize import dependency and we will be able to produce for export. This will also help in having Non-Oil FX coming into the country.”
He also advised that Nigeria must boost its production capacity if the envisioned one trillion-dollar economy must be achieved by year 2026.
He, said; “We cannot achieve a $1 trillion economy without focusing or boosting our production capacity.”
He identified lack of production as a major challenge in realizing the ambitious dream, noting that; “We are not producing enough, and we cannot continue to consume imported goods and expect the economy to be robust.”
As one of the panelists at the event, with the theme; “Nigeria’s Journey Towards $1 Trillion Economy: Impact of Banks’ Re-Capitalization, Opportunities for Fintechs, Real Sector”, Omagu said; “The economy stands on both the monetary and fiscal sides, we need both sides to work together. While the monetary side is trying to stabilize prices which is their primary mandate, we also need the fiscal side on the issue of governance to come in.”
He canvassed support for the productive sector of the economy, saying; “If we continue to invest in agriculture, infrastructure and services to a reasonable extent, this will drive production that will minimize importation into the country, and the pressure on our forex will go down.”
On government intervention in the last six months, Omagu said; “From BoI as a government institution, one of the things we are doing in boosting production is supporting Small and Medium-Scale Enterprises (SMSEs)”
According to him, “If we continue to support them in production, it will not only reduce pressure on importation as this will boost backward integration and there will be reduction in the importation of some of the raw materials used for production.
Omagu noted that the only thing the country may be importing is equipment, but any raw material going into the production should be sourced locally.
The FICAN 2024 annual conference attracted key players in the financial sector, and importantly provided an opportunity for in-depth discussions on the future of Nigeria’s economy, the role of banks, and the opportunities for fintechs to drive inclusive growth within the economy.