A leading non-governmental organisation (NGO) in the country, involved in micro finance has increased its loan portfolio to N395.5 million micro loans to entrepreneurs across 22 states in the country.
The programme director, Growing Business Foundation, Cecile Agwu, noted in a statement that the loans were extended to 80 Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs) and Community Based Organisations (CBOS) with 13,521 entrepreneurs benefiting up-to-date.
Agwu explained that the increase was made possible by the recent roll out of its Market Linkages Programme (MLP) in six more states.
The recently introduced MLP is designed to empower women entrepreneurs and farmers at the grassroots with access to ICTs towards enhancing income generation and market leakages to use ICT to bridge the gap between the producer and consumer of agriculture produce.
GBF, a 100 per cent private sector funded NGO, was established nine years ago to promote sustainable economic development led by socially responsible businesses and specifically to enhance collaboration amongst businesses, governments and non-profit organizations towards this end.
It has also been at the forefront of raising awareness that profit-orientated companies have a social conscience, and can initiate activities that benefit the socially disempowered, for mutual benefit.
From 1999 to date, GBFs funding has been by way of mobilising resources in grants, donations and subscriptions from its Nigerian partners to promote its operations among the rural and urban people in the country.
However, the GBF is currently in partnerships with nine MFIs across the geopolitical zones in the country within its life span able to pioneer initiatives that have impacted positively on the lives of the people at the bottom of the pyramid across the country.