The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), has granted licenses to over 150 Business Development Service Providers (BDSPs) in an effort to further deepen professionalism within the BDS ecosystem in the country.
Speaking in Lagos, the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Marriam Katagum said the award of licenses certificate programme for BDSPs was important for the continuous growth of MSMEs in the country.
Represented by Director, Industrial Development, Mr Adewale Bakare she urged certified BDSPs to use the opportunity in the betterment of solving challenges confronting MSMEs in Nigeria.
She said, “The ministry will continue supporting all entrepreneurs across Nigeria towards ensuring that they achieved the MSMEs sub-sector of the our dream in areas of job, wealth creation and poverty alleviation.”
Commending the programme, the Director General and CEO of SMEDAN, Olawale Fasanya, said the agency would continue to be at the forefront of establishing a platform for enthroning professionalism within their BDS ecosystem in Nigeria as part of her mandate.
He said, “We consulted widely both within and outside the country in the run up to the establishment of the Framework because our original resolve was to create a system that is geared towards setting a standard for the delivery of services by BDSPs to MSMEs in Nigeria. MSMEs have continuously complained about the quality and cost of services provided by various BDSPs in the past. Therefore, this Framework has arrived at the most appropriate time to address the issues surrounding delivery of low-quality services at very exorbitant costs by BDSPs in Nigeria.”
According to him in liaison with the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and other relevant stakeholders within the MSMEs sub-sector in Nigeria, only certified BDSPs would be allowed to deliver capacity building, mentorship, counseling and other forms of BDS to MSMEs in Nigeria.
Similarly, the Director General, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, (NAFDAC), Prof. Chistianah Adeyeye, revealed that the agency had created a 50 per cent discount for MSME registration to encourage more participants in the profession.
Also, the Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Mr Muhammad Nami, represented by the Director of State, FIRS, Mr Abubakar Muhammed, commended the effort of the awardee and assured them of the service’s continuous collaboration.
Expressing his delightment, the Director, Enterprise Development Centre, Pan Africa Atlantic University, Dr Peter Bamkole, commended SMEDAN for the professionalism saying that the network would ease challenges encountered by MSME in Nigeria.
