Nigeria Banks Focus More on SMEs Development In 2014

 

As the world continue to focus and invest on the viability of the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), financial institutions in Nigeria are also contributing their quota to ensuring that the SME sector of the economy remains a catalyst for national real economic development.

Financial institutions in Nigeria are supporting government initiatives in ensuring a conducive and better environment for Small business owners in the country. Some of this support comes through loan, sponsorship, mentorship and banking business solutions that will help their businesses grow.

In this year alone, banks like Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB), Sterling bank and Access Bank unveiled SME-productive initiatives – signaling a major investment in ensuring the growth of SME in the country.

For instance, Sterling Bank Plc recently revealed plans to invest in new business initiatives through a project called “Meet the Executive” in order to nuture them to become viable Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). In doing this, the bank has organized a team of seasoned consultants to carefully scrutinize proposals received from members of the public.

The ‘Meet the Executive’ project is a project designed to support new and aspiring entrepreneurs; in line with the bank’s purpose of enriching lives and also positioning as a prime supporter of small and medium sized businesses in the country.

The project has already attracted over 1,000 business plans from Small Business Owners (SBOs) aspiring to become big entrepreneurs out of which 50 best entries were selected based on originality of the plans, their viability and provision of detailed information such as the required capital, cash flow and revenue projections.

Owners of the 50 proposed business plans selected will be engaged in a training programme in Enterprise Development programming Centre organised by the bank to further enrich their knowledge in the management of small businesses and writing of business plans. Upon completion of the training, participants would be required to fine-tune their business plans, present them to the bank and then the best 20 plans would be selected for formal presentation by their owners to the executive management of the bank.

While noting that national economic development prospects in any country was hinged on the entrepreneurial energy of vibrant SMEs as most big business concerns once grew from small scale, Sterling Bank’s  Group Head, Strategy & Communications, Shina Atilola, said: “Many economies- developed and developing ones have come to realize the value of small businesses. They are seen to be characterized by dynamism, witty innovations and efficiency as their small size allows faster decision-making process.

“Small businesses are believed to be the engine room for the development of any economy because they form the bulk of business activities in a growing economy like Nigeria,” he added.

Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) has also vowed to pay more attention to SMEs this year (2014).  The bank is doing this by setting up a website that will help SMEs owners sell their goods all over the country and abroad.

GTB General Manager, Communication and External Relations Lola Adedina, said the bank is trying to explore areas that will add value to the SMEs.

“We have 160 million Nigerians, of whom over 50 million are using the internet today and so GTB created a platform that enables our customers who have businesses to open their shop on our platform so that they can trade with anybody anywhere in the world.”

According to her, past and present governments have channelled a lot of effort towards SMEs but nothing has really happened as majority of the SMEs that have benefitted from government loans still come back to bank to ask them for loans.

A latest report released by the Nigeria's Bank of Industry (BOI) confirmed this stating that a total of N870.44b was disbursed across the various sectors of the country’s economy within the last two years. While the agro-business benefitted N53.3b, other sectors including the entertainment industry,  gulped N337.60, Aviation (181bn), Textile (50.39bn), Rice(N2.8bn), NAC fund(N9.74bn) Cement(N0.719bn) and Restructuring and Refi nancing Fund (N229.18bn).

Another bank paving way of recent in facilitating the growth of SMEs is the Access Bank Nigeria PLC who over the weekend launched a number of capacity development initiatives for contractors through innovative partnering that will help enhance their operational efficiency.

According to the bank’s Executive Director, Business Banking Division, Mrs. Titi Osuntoki, the move was designed to assist the bank validate the appropriateness of solutions recommended for the business owners with a view to enhancing the bank’s services.

Aside this, the bank has also offer support in strategic business support initiatives like capacity development to networking hub through a specialized SME desk saddled with the responsibility of providing on field business support and financial advice.

Some of the business solutions introduced include MPower Salary Account, Working Capital Finance, Payroll Management, loans and advances and financial support through asset acquisition among others.