By Omodele Adigun
In order to channel appropriate funding to the small and medium scale industries, the Nigerian Association of Small Scale Industrialists (NASSI) has called on the Nigerian banks to give single digit interest loans to the SME sector.
According to its Lagos Chairman, Mr.Segun Kuti-George, most of the credit lines offered by the banks are far from being appropriate for the small scale enterprises which constitute over 90 per cent of businesses in the country. “For instance, I cant pay back working with 30 per cent interest rate loans.That is why many companies collapse, and that is why we have high level of bad debts in the banks today. When we talk about appropriate funding, we are talking about single digit interest loans,” he added.
Kuti-George, who stated this at a briefing to announce the forthcoming 1st Made in Nigeria Fair jointly organized by NASSI and Lagos State government, said the mandates of the Association , among others, include sourcing appropriate funding for its members, marketing and advocacy with governments and their agencies,
“Most of the government interventions we see today were as a result of advocacy: the N220billion MSMEs fund, the N500billion Agric Credit Scheme and very recently, the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund”, he said.
On the Trade Fair, he said “the public need to know and see what we have so that they can patronise them”, adding that “it is in response to the need to expose what we have to both local and international consumption and patronage that NASSI is putting together the SME-Exclusive Fair scheduled for April 3-8, 2017.”
Earlier, the Chairperson of the Trade Fair organizing Committee, Mrs Gertrude Akhimien, said about 200 exhibitors are expected from various sectors such as Food & Beverage, Textile & Clothing, Household & Toiletries; Plastics & Waste Recycling, Printing & Packaging; Marble & Ceramics.