Connect with us

Business

SMEDAN Restates Support For MSMEs

Published

4 years ago

on

Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has reaffirmed commitment and support for development of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria.
The Director General of SMEDAN , Mr Dikko Radda,  gave the assurance in Kano at the agency’s 2021 Board/Management retreat.
According to him, MSMEs remain the engine room for critical economic growth and poverty reduction globally.
Radda said that the retreat would provide them with another solemn opportunities to chart new roadmap toward repositioning the MSMEs subsector in a restructured and and more efficient manner.
“Since the last retreat held in Lagos in 2019, our roles and functions as Nigeria’s prime entrepreneurship development agency has not only become enormous but more responsive in a dynamic and vastly changing global economy.
“It is in this regard that we carefully selected all of you to come and deliberate and to further strategize on ways to reposition the agency toward effective service delivery to the  MSMEs sub sector of the Nigerian economy,” he explained.


According to Radda, the ongoing MSMEs Mass Registration Program (MMRP) will provide a veritable platform for information and data collection toward strategic planning of program for the growth and development of the sector.
He said that the agency would launch the 2021 edition of Mindshift Entrepreneurship Program(MEP) in Kano.
MEP was designed to engage the vibrant energy of Nigerian students and youths and channel it into productive venture creation and management of their own businesses.
Radda also restated President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration’s commitment  to lifting more Nigerians out of poverty.
In a remark, Minister of State for Trade and Investment, Maryam Katagum, said  the recent survey  of the National Bureau of Statistics as reported on its website portrayed a worrying picture of the rate of unemployment in the country.
“This is in spite of the strident efforts of government in implementing policies targeted at driving growth and creating employment,” she said.
Represented by Director Planning, Research and Statistics, Babagana Alkali said the best way to arrest the above situation was to have a virile MSME subsector, possibly with special focus on youths and women.
The minister said that 2017 survey jointly by National Bureau of Statistics and SMEDAN revealed that  there were 41 million MSMEs in Nigeria and the figure represented  over 80 per cent of the total number of Enterprises and accounts for 75 per cent of Nigeria’s total employment base.
According to her, development of the MSME sub- sector is the surest way of addressing the several agitation and very tense security challenges across the country.

Related Topics:
Continue Reading

Business

Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

Published

3 days ago

on

September 22, 2025

By

Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.

Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.

The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.

Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.

“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.

“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”

Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.

In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.

Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.

Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.

 

Continue Reading

Business

NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

Published

3 days ago

on

September 22, 2025

By

The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure during an inspection of the Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja, last Thursday.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
According to him, the centralised production system aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for improved service delivery.
Continue Reading

Business

FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

Published

3 days ago

on

September 22, 2025

By

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) platforms across key sectors of the economy, starting in early 2026.
Director of E-Government and Digital Economy at NITDA, Dr. Salisu Kaka, made the disclosure in Abuja during a stakeholder review session of the DPI and NGDX drafts at the Digital Public Infrastructure Live Event.
The forum, themed “Advancing Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure through Standards, Data Exchange and e-Government Transformation,” brought together regulators, state governments, and private sector stakeholders to harmonise inputs for building inclusive, secure, and interoperable systems for governance and service delivery.
According to Kaka, Nigeria already has several foundational elements in place, including national identity systems and digital payment platforms.
What remains is the establishment of the data exchange framework, which he said would be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Before the end of this year and by next year we will be fully ready with the foundational element, and we start dropping the use cases across sectors,” Kaka explained.
He stressed that the federal government recognises the autonomy of states urging them to align with national standards.
“If the states can model and reflect what happens at the national level, then we can have a 360-degree view of the whole data exchange across the country and drive all-of-government processes,” he added.
Continue Reading

Trending