Access Bank Plc, is partnering with the Office of the Vice-President to provide N30 billion to support four million Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), women and youths businesses in Nigeria.
This was made known in an interview with the Group Managing Director of the bank, Mr. Roosevelt Ogbonna, after a meeting with the Vice-President, Kashim Shettima at the Presidential Villa, on Friday in Abuja.
According to Ogbonna, the money would be provided to the MSMEs at discounted rates, said the bank had been supporting MSMEs and women over the last 16 to 17 years.
He said “Shettima has a biased for women as we do. It was a very interesting meeting with the Vice-President,Kashim Shettima, we spoke about how we can begin to impact the lives of women and youths in Nigeria as well as how we can support the MSMEs.
”We spoke on broad range of issues. We want to change the lives through the Office of the vice-president of small businesses of women and youths.
”We do agree and determine that about 66 per cent of MSMEs in Nigeria are owned by women and youths. And I think one of the challenges that they faced is access to finance.
”Working with the Office of the vice-president we agreed today that Access bank will provide about N30 billion towards supporting MSMEs and youths.” He added.
He emphasized that the bank had designed four different programmes to benefit no fewer than four million MSMES in the country
Ogbonna also revealed that the bank would organise training programmes that would take them beyond the shores of Nigeria.
He added, “So that they can be better when they return. Financing we expect that about 700,000 to a million people will be impacted but overall the programme will impact about four million MSMEs, youths and women.”
In his remarks, he said “We are excited to be part of that process and we thank the office of the vice-president for giving us this opportunity to be a partner to his office.
“It will start from today, we just have to look for the deserving MSMEs. As we all know Access bank has been a bank that has supported SMEs and women for the last almost 16 to 17 years.” he concluded.
On his part, Mr. Temitola Adekunle-Johnson, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Job Creation and MSMEs, Office of the Vice-President, said “President Bola Tinubu has told the entire world that Nigeria is ready and truly we are ready. Our doors are open for business and partnership.
“And you cannot thrive in this economy without the private sector and nor can the private sector thrive alone with the public sector.
“This is a viable opportunities for MSMEs and it not a programme that we will need to have another conference or a meeting for, it starts now.”