Over 4million MSMEs Benefitted From N150bn FG Schemes, says Osinbajo

*Launches BoI Aid for productivity report

Motolani Oseni

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, has said that more than four million Micro, Small and Medium microcredit loans to petty traders across the country.

According to the Vice President, the various social intervention schemes of the Buhari administration have made a significant impact on the lives of millions of ordinary Nigerians.

In furtherance of its determination to boost economic growth, the Administration has also ramped up its support for MSMEs sector, which accounts for close to 50 per cent of Nigeria’s GDP and 76per cent of the country’s labour force.

In his keynote address on Monday at the Bank of Industry (BOI) Aid for Productivity report launch, Osinbajo noted that the development chronicled the impact, and future of the BoI’s Growth Platform, which is the human and technology infrastructure used to drive multiple large-scale intervention programmes for micro, small and medium enterprises.

More importantly, the VP pointed out that the fact that the success of the BOI Growth Platform was the story of “the Nigerian can-do spirit and the entrepreneurial DNA we carry.”

“This is a shining case study of what President Muhammadu Buhari strongly believes: that Nigerians will solve Nigeria’s problems. This is an example of what we can achieve when we unleash the best of our people – especially our young – on the toughest of our challenges, and give them the free-hand to deliver results,” he added.

The BOI Growth Platform includes interventions schemes such as the renowned Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) loans (MarketMoni, FarmerMoni and TraderMoni) – regarded as Africa’s largest fully-digitized micro-credit scheme, the MSME Survival Fund under the Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP), the North-East Rehabilitation Fund, the recently launched World Bank $750million NG-CARES programme, and state-based interventions, among others.

As the VP stated, “this demographic was far too important to ignore. We had to start solving for them, especially having been left far behind historically,” a reason he noted led to the implementation of intervention schemes through the BOI’s Growth Platform for MSMEs.

“What might also not be obvious is the sheer scale of impact that has been achieved with these programmes, as over four million Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises have been direct beneficiaries of the over N150billion deployed in the past five years,” the VP said.

He added that “57 per cent of these MSMEs are owned by Nigerians below 35 years of age, and close to 60 per cent of the beneficiaries are women. What is even less glaring is that the team of Nigerian professionals behind this work is largely young, with an average age of 28 years old.”

Highlighting the transparency and impact of these microcredit schemes, particularly the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP loans – MarketMoni, FarmerMoni and TraderMoni) under the SIPs, Prof. Osinbajo recalled his interaction in 2018 with a petty trader, Jafar Abubakar, one of the Tradermoni beneficiaries at Abubakar Gumi Market in Kaduna when he visited to launch the scheme in the State.

He narrated: “Jafar Abubakar, who trades in ginger and garlic was one of 5,000 or so traders who had just received ₦10,000 to advance his business in that market. What struck me was what he said about how he was selected to get the credit.

“He said ‘i just applied. I didn’t know anybody. They came here and captured my data last week and I got the alert yesterday.’”

The VP added that Jafar then “showed me the alert on his phone. Stories like Jafar’s have become all too familiar to me over these years. It is a consistent tune I hear as I engage thousands of beneficiaries of our intervention programmes.”

Indeed, the TraderMoni scheme, which provides N10,000 interest-free & collateral-free loans to petty traders, mostly with an inventory of less than N5,000, had made a huge positive impact nationwide. This includes enhancing the small businesses of beneficiaries, improving their families and contributing to the informal economy.

“This is perhaps for me one of the most satisfying things about the way our social intervention schemes are deployed. That there is a platform that can process applications from potential beneficiaries, payout credits or other benefits, maintain auditable records seamlessly. It is those people and infrastructure that make this happen that we are celebrating today,” Prof. Osinbajo noted.

Prof. Osinbajo also praised the infrastructure and transparency behind the BOI Growth Platform schemes. For instance, he recalled his visit to the Growth Platform’s Command Centre, which now has “22,000 agents, living across all LGAs in Nigeria and equipped with its proprietary mobile technologies, receive mandates to capture and digitize businesses eligible for its growing suite of programmes.”

In his remarks, the BOI Managing Director, Mr Olukayode Pitan, restated the impact of its programmes, noting how programmes such as GEEP have won several local and international awards, including the award at the 2019 African Bankers’ Awards as the most impactful Financial Inclusion program in Africa

The event also featured closing remarks by representatives of BOI partners: including Mr Ahmed Rostom, Senior Financial Sector Specialist, World Bank; and the country director, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Dr Jeremie Zoungrana