The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) is shifting MSME support from survival interventions to scalable growth.
The SMEDAN Director-General, Mr Charles Odii, said this at the National Stakeholders Validation workshop on the Review of National Policy on MSMEs in Abuja on Wednesday.
Odii represented by the Acting Director, Policy Planning, Research and Statistics, Mr Philip Udeochu, said the revised policy would move from fragmented programmes to a unified national delivery architecture for MSMEs.
He also said that the policy would also prioritise productivity, competitiveness, digital transformation, data systems and enterprises’ ability to compete regionally and globally.
According to him, the policy is designed to help Nigerian MSMEs thrive, scale and win, rather than merely survive.
He said the review followed extensive consultations with entrepreneurs and stakeholders across the country, including marketplaces, workshops, farms and digital spaces.
The SMEDAN boss said the revised policy would promote formalisation, job creation, enterprise growth and stronger partnerships with financial institutions and development partners.
He urged stakeholders to critically examine the draft and ensure that the final policy reflected the realities of Nigerian entrepreneurs.
The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Chris Isokpunwu, represented by Mrs Olumuyiwa Ajayi,Director, Industrial Development Department at the ministry, said the review was timely.
Isokpunwu said changing economic realities, emerging technologies and evolving business models required a responsive MSME policy.
He said MSMEs remained critical to entrepreneurship, employment generation, innovation, value creation and inclusive economic participation.
He urged stakeholders to ensure that the revised policy had strong institutional arrangements, coordination mechanisms, monitoring and evaluation frameworks.
Earlier, Mr Omoware Akinropo, Head of Component, SEDIN, GIZ, stressed that effective implementation remained critical to achieving the objectives of the revised policy.
Akinropo urged SMEDAN to retain the Technical Working Group beyond validation to support implementation, monitoring, reporting and coordination of the policy.
He identified weak coordination among federal, state and local governments as one of the major challenges affecting MSME policy implementation.
He assured that GIZ would continue to provide technical support to SMEDAN and other stakeholders during implementation.
Similarly, Mr Anum Serumun, Administrative Secretary, National Association of Small and Medium Industries (NASSI), urged participants to leverage the workshop to strengthen skills, innovation and networking.
He said stronger MSMEs would contribute to building a more competitive and sustainable Nigerian economy.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Deborah Coker