Minister lauds Etisalat for commitment to SME development

The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Hajiya Aisha Abubakar, has commended Etisalat Nigeria for its commitment to the growth and development of Small and Medium scale Enterprises in Nigeria.

The Minister who spoke in Abuja at the flag-off of the 2016 edition of Market Access Forum, organised by the Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) of the Pan Atlantic University in partnership with Etisalat Nigeria, applauded the telecom company for being at the forefront of promoting initiatives that support growing businesses as one of the key drivers of Nigerian economic prosperity.

Abubakar said Market Access Forum is a platform that has inspired many aspiring entrepreneurs, and provided a credible platform for learning and collaboration amongst Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in Nigeria.

She added: “the time to support SMEs in Nigeria could not have been more auspicious than now that the Federal Government of Nigeria is consciously making efforts to diversify from an oil economy. Certainly, this is a good omen for small and growing businesses which constitute over 95% of the Nigerian economy”.

Director, Enterprise Segment, Etisalat Nigeria, Eric Uwaoma represented by Bidemi Ladipo speaking at the event, reiterated Etisalat’s commitment to the growth of SMEs in Nigeria by continuously offering start-ups opportunities that can make them increase their capacity.

“We have supported Market Access Forum for about four years, and we will continue to offer our support. Etisalat supports initiatives like Market Access because we think it is important to show small and growing businesses how they can attain healthy growth the same way Etisalat attained its record growth. That is why we have supported initiatives like Market Access where entrepreneurs can network, and learn the secrets to run their businesses efficiently”, he said.

Ladipo added that one of the key insights drawn from the partnership with the Enterprise Development Centre is the knowledge that the lack of capacity is one of the key challenges SMEs face in Nigeria apart from funding. According to him, “Many entrepreneurs in Nigeria do not understand how to run a business properly. As part of our intervention to help solve the challenges, Etisalat has been involved in different initiatives; one of them is Market Access which we have taken to different parts of the country.

“The second initiative is the EasyBusiness Millionaires’ Hunt, an initiative that gives SMEs, who subscribe to Etisalat EasyBusiness package the opportunity to apply for a business grant. Through this initiative Etisalat has trained 100 entrepreneurs and given businesses over N40 million in grants”.

Director, Enterprise Development Centre, Pan Atlantic University, Mr. Peter Bamkole said the fundamental goal of Market Access Forum was to facilitate market access for Small and Growing Business (SGBs) by keying them into the value chain of large organizations.

He added that the event served as a viable platform for Small and Growing Businesses and large companies in and around Abuja to network, build relationships and create opportunities. It also served as an avenue to address the needs of SMEs in Nigeria.