As part of the Federal Government’s commitment to help small businesses stay afloat amid the economic challenges occasioned by COVID-19 pandemic, the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, OtunbaNiyi Adebayo has inaugurated a 10-man steering committee to drive the implementation of the various support schemes for small businesses especially Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the country.
This comes on the heels of the recently announced plans of the Federal Government, during the 2020 edition of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Awards, to implement a number of schemes as planned in the Economic Sustainability Plan.
In that plan the Federal Government envisaged a N2.3 trillion stimulus package to financially support MSMEs which include private schools, hotels, road transport workers and creative industries through the MSMEs Guaranteed Off-take Simulation Scheme. This has been designed to sustain 300,000 jobs in 100,000
MSMEs and the MSMEs Survival Fund, targeted at sustaining 1,000,000 jobs in 100,000 MSMEs and 333,000 self-employed individuals.
The inaugurated 10-man steering committee has membership drawn from both the public and private sectors with the Minister of State for Industry, Trade & Investment, Amb. Mariam Katagum, as the Chairman and MrsIbukunAwosika, Chairman, First Bank of Nigeria Plc, the Vice – Chairman.
Other members of the committee include the Chairman of Anambra Rice Mills, Akai Egwuonu; the Director-General, Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Joseph Ari; Managing Director, Bank of Industry (BOI), KayodePitan; and the Director-General, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (SMEDAN), DikkoRadda.
The chief mandate of the committee is to oversee the implementation of the various MSMEs support schemes captured in the NESP as well as the selection and enrollment of beneficiaries for the schemes.
Source: Diplomatic Vista