The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria(SMEDAN) said plans have reached advanced stage for the establishment of a Microfinance Bank as well as Monotechnic by the Agency.
Mr. Charles Odii, Director General of SMEDAN, revealed this at a media briefing in Abuja.
Odii, who underscored the need for the establishment of these institutions, said they would enable the Agency to increase its operational efficiency as well as enhance its service delivery to the Small and Medium Enterprises(SMEs) across the country.
On the rationale for the proposed establishment of Microfinance Bank, he explained that it would enable the Agency to give money directly to the small business owners, track the loans given as well as enable the Agency to attract funding from some development partners and funding institutions.
According to him, “It is important that SMEDAN starts paying money directly to small business owners through micro- finance bank that we can control.
“One of the things that we do is that we actually identify some of these businesses, and then we do disbursement through some partners.
“In the case of our One Local Government, One Product Initiative, we look for microfinance banks and give them money, and then we tell them to go and disburse the money, and they are involved in tracking the money. Many of them do not know the small businesses. But we know the small businesses.
“Many of them actually even have their own problems. I will give you an instance. One or two of the microfinance banks that we worked with are closed down. The money has gone.
“So, if we have our financing outfit that we can control and we can monitor, we can also know how we can disburse this money effectively.
“And because we do not have this, it has also hindered us from actually attracting funding, in some cases, from development partners or some funding institutions want to know that it’s our own outfit before they give us money.
“So, if you have this, then we can go to the international community to actually seek for more funding at single digits interest rates for small businesses.”
He further explained that the monotechnic would offer diploma certificates to those who have acquired skills in the Agency and completed various training programmes.
He therefore, appealed to the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) and National Board for Technical Education(NBTE) to expedite action on granting the Agency operating licences for these institutions
Reviewing the activities of SMEDAN in 2025, the Director General said the Agency created 90,102 new jobs across various sectors in the first quarter of 2025.
Odii said the Agency disbursed grants to more than 18,339 mono businesses under Conditional Grant Schemes, supporting their transition into the formal sector through the targeted training and access to financial services, including bank account opening to deepen financial inclusion.
He further said the Agency funded 3,100 Cooperatives nationwide under the One Local Government One Product Intiative, helping them to improve operations and expand production.
Other achievements he reeled out, include the registration of over 263,454 businesses, giving them a pathway to formalisation and long-term growth.
According to him, “SMEDAN provided essential work tools,including start-up kits and modern equipment to over 200,000 entrepreneurs through programmes such as the National Business Skills Development Initiative and targeted interventions supported by the National Assembly members, enhancing productivity and business growth.
“We delivered training to over 40,000 small businesses in areas like financial literacy, access to finance, export readiness, use of continental trade agreements like the AfCFTA and digital skills.
“These efforts have improved their capacity, linked them to new markets and driven stronger business performance.
“We have mobilised N12 billion in affordable financing for SMEs through strategic partnerships with public-private sector institutions, improving access to capital nationwide.”
