FG announces $1 billion syndicated loan to support MSMEs

The Federal Government has said that the Bank of Industry (BoI), under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, has secured a $1 billion syndicated loan to support Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the country.

The loan is expected to improve the capacity of the bank to effectively support MSMEs across key sectors of the Nigerian economy.

This statement was made by the Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo, at the Quantum Mechanics Limited MSMEs Survival Fund capacity building programme in Abuja on Monday, March 22, 2021.

Adebayo said the loan facility, which has some benefits that include long-term tenor and moratorium, is being implemented in collaboration with international partners and is part of the government’s efforts toward economic recovery and sustainable growth.

Adebayo in his statement said, “There is an ongoing discussion with Dunn and Bradstreet to establish an SMEs Ratings Agency of Nigeria (SMERAN) to provide an empirical basis toward analysing the eligibility of SMEs to access credit.’’

The Minister noted that the ministry launched the MSMEs Survival Fund Initiative, in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, as part of the Federal Government’s support to MSMEs development in the country.

He said the initiative, which is part of the Federal Government’s Nigerian Economic Sustainability Plan (NESP), is aimed at protecting MSMEs businesses from the shocks of the pandemic.

He explained that the fund was also estimated to save at least, 1.3 million jobs across the country while strengthening the growth potential of beneficiary businesses.

The minister said the National MSMEs Clinics also supported the growth of small businesses across the country through the provision of critical infrastructure, with 26 of such clinics showing impressive results.

He further disclosed that the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), had launched the Export Expansion Facility (EEF) under the NESP, to support the resilience of new and existing MSMEs to respond to Covid-19 pandemic shocks.