Mariam Katagum

FG to support MSMEs contribution to economy to boost development – Minister

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The Minister said that the FG has schemes aimed at improving the post-pandemic climate for MSMEs in Nigeria.

READ ALSO: Paypal’s Venmo now permits cryptocurrency trading

The Federal Government declared that it is working with stakeholders to improve MSME participation in the economy through improving the business climate which will create jobs.

This was disclosed by Amb. Mariam Katagum, Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, at the 7th EMPRETEC Global Summit,  on Tuesday, themed “The Role of Entrepreneurship, MSME and EMPRETEC in post-COVID-19 Resurgence.”

The Minister stated that the MSME sector of the economy is the growth engine of any economy which contributes to its development, job creation and export, amongst others.

“An MSMEs survey indicates that Nigeria’s SMEs contribute nearly 50 percent of the country’s GDP and account for over 80 percent of employment. No doubt, the sector is pivotal to Nigeria’s growth, including reducing poverty and unemployment levels.

It has, therefore, become more apparent that supporting entrepreneurs and small businesses by creating opportunities for MSMEs to thrive is essential for increasing productivity, creating jobs, and boosting our economy.

This is why the Government is working with stakeholders across all sectors, to create the enabling environment for entrepreneurs and MSMEs to ensure that they grow now and into the future,” she stated.

On Economic Sustainability

The Minister said that the FG has schemes aimed at improving the post-pandemic climate for SMEs in Nigeria. She also disclosed that the FG launched the National Policy on Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), a framework for the resolution of the challenges faced by the sector.

The programmes launched by the FG includes the Survival Fund and Guaranteed Off-take Schemes, operated by a Steering Committee in the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

“The Government of Nigeria had, prior to the outbreak of COVID-19, initiated the MSMEs Clinics scheme as a strategy, aimed at providing support for the MSMEs in the country.

At the clinics, operators in the MSMEs space are engaged by regulators and business advisory experts, on issues ranging from entrepreneurship, skill development, finance, quality & standards, and on how to facilitate and grow their businesses and enterprises,” she added.

What you should know 

Nigeria’s unemployment rate as of the end of 2020 rose to 33.3% from 27.1% recorded as of Q2 2020, indicating that about 23,187,389 (23.2 million) Nigerians remain unemployed.

A combination of both the unemployment and underemployment rate for the reference period gave a figure of 56.1%. This means that 33.3% of the labour force in Nigeria or 23,187,389 persons either did nothing or worked for less than 20 hours a week, making them unemployed by our definition in Nigeria.

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Venmo

Paypal’s Venmo now permits cryptocurrency trading

by with No Comment Businessfinance

Venmo, a mobile payment service owned by PayPal has announced that it has started allowing users to buy, hold and sell cryptocurrencies on its app. Just like PayPal, Venmo will support four different cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin, and users can carry out transactions with as little as $1 on the app

Founded in 2009, Venmo has over 70 million users and it is one of the most popular payment channels in the US. The payment platform processed around $159 billion in payments last year.

Since the app functions like a social network, adding cryptocurrency will offer a more user-friendly feel for people who love buying and selling crypto.

READ: CBN resumes $100m weekly sales for SMEs, school fees

As bigger companies show more interest in cryptocurrency, there will be wider adoption of virtual currencies in future. Venmo is the latest payment app that is offering support for cryptocurrency on its platform.

Paypal, the parent company of Venmo is one of the most active companies in the crypto space as it allows users to buy, sell and hold cryptocurrencies in their digital wallets. Paypal users can also spend their coins at millions of merchants globally.

Crypto on Venmo is enabled through PayPal’s partnership with Paxos Trust Company, a regulated provider of cryptocurrency products and services.

What they are saying

Darrell Esch, Venmo’s Senior Vice President and general manager said “Our goal is to provide our customers with an easy-to-use platform that simplifies the process of buying and selling cryptocurrencies and demystifies some of the common questions and misconceptions that consumers may have.”

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CBN

CBN resumes $100m weekly sales for SMEs, school fees

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CBN resumes $100m weekly sales for SMEs, school fees… concludes plans to resume sales to BDCs

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Wednesday said it had resumed $100 million weekly sales for school fees and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

READ ALSO: SMEDAN To Protect Intellectual Property For MSMEs

The CBN has also made complete arrangements to resume foreign exchange sales to the BDC segment of the market for business travels, personal travels, and other designated retail uses, as soon as international flights resume.

The regulator on March 26, suspended foreign exchange sales to the Bureau De Change (BDC) operators until further notice due to the Covid-19 lockdown as requested by the operators. The suspension notwithstanding, some BDCs are still active in the market.

This is in view of the gradual easing of the COVID-19 lockdown both globally and in Nigeria.

A statement signed by Isaac Okorafor, director, corporate communications department, reads “Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has resumed provision of foreign exchange to all commercial banks for onward sales to parents wishing to pay schools fees and SMEs wishing to make essential imports needed to revamp economic activities across the country. In particular, the CBN is resuming the provision of over US$100 million per week for both categories”.

With these actions, the CBN reiterated that it is adequately meeting the needs of all legitimate users, and its continued capacity to do so should not be in doubt.

There is therefore no need for panic by any end-user that could necessitate recourse to illegitimate sources and spike in foreign exchange rates, the CBN said.

Given this, the Bank has ramped up its surveillance of the foreign exchange markets for speculators, smugglers and other illegal users, and will take decisive actions against anyone/institutions involved in such nefarious activities.

Reacting to CBN’ action, Aminu Gwadabe, president of Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) said, “Yes, it is in line as our product is cash not digital currency and our clients are travellers. In line with our scope, we engage mostly personal travelling allowance and Buisiness travelling allowance which in all scenarios demand ticket visas of our customers”.

The Naira weakened further by N5.00k as one dollar traded at N460 at the close of business on Wednesday compared with N455 traded in the morning at the black market.

The local currency lost N0.20k at the close of business as the dollar traded at N386.45k on Wednesday as against N386.25k on Tuesday at the Investors and Exporters (I&E) forex window, data from FMDQ indicated.

Naira depreciated by N2 at the retail bureaus as the dollar was trading at N467 on Wednesday from N465 quoted on Tuesday.

Gwadabe said the assurances of the apex bank and the partial return of operations in the foreign exchange market will  ensure sanity and discourage frivolous demand and panic buying which pervades the market in recent times.

He said the BDCs will return as soon as lockdown in the international airport are relaxed.

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SMEDAN MSMES

SMEDAN To Protect Intellectual Property For MSMEs

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The Director General/ Chief Executive Officer of Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency Nigeria SMEDAN, Dr Dikko Radda has said that the agency would protect intellectual property for the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises sector of the economy.

READ ALSO: Access Bank Acquires 78.15% Stake In Atlas Mara Subsidiary

He stressed on the need for SMEs to be sensitised on the importance of Intellectual Property to enhancing the value of their enterprises.

Radda, who made call during a world press conference to commemorate the 2021 World Intellectual Property Day , a brainchild of the World Intellectual Property Organisation in Abuja, lamented that most Small and Medium Enterprises, across the country are not aware of the importance in enhancing the value of their products, services and processes.

He also urged relevant agency with the statutory function in the administration of IP to be easily accessible by moving closer to the SMEs.

He gave examples of intellectual property that would be protected to include music, literature, and other artistic works; discoveries and inventions; and words, phrases, symbols, and designs among others.

He further explained that under the intellectual property laws, owners of intellectual property are granted certain exclusive rights.

He described intellectual property as a key consideration in day to day business decisions as new products, brands, creative designs appear almost daily on the market and are result of continuous human innovation and creativity.

Radda said, “SMEs are often the driving force behind innovations. However, their innovation and creative capacity is not fully exploited as many SMEs are not fully aware of the intellectual property system.”

He identified one of the challenges facing MSMEs to include lack of awareness as most of them ar not aware of the importance of intellectual property in enhancing th value of their products, services and processes.

The SMEDAN Boss also said costs associated with IP protection may deter SMEs in taking the initiative protecting their intellectual property

In his remarks, the Ag. Head, World Intellectual Property Organisation Nigeria office , Mr Oluwatobiloba Moody said at a time when the imperative of economic recovery in Nigeria is high, particularly in the light of global pandemic, the WIPD 2021 provides an important moment to shine a light on the critical role of SMEs in Nigeria.

Moody said SMEs are the backbone of Nigeria’s economy, adding that they deliver the goods and services Nigerians need everyday.

DG SMEDAN also said MSME hatch breakthrough innovations and inspiring creations that have job creation potentials.

He said globally, SMEs make up about 90 per cent of the world’s businesses, employ around 50 percent of the global workforce and generate up to 40 percent of national income in many emerging economies.

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Access Bank

Access Bank Acquires 78.15% Stake In Atlas Mara Subsidiary

by with No Comment BusinessFeatured

Access Bank Plc’ has announced a fresh purchase of a majority shareholding right in a subsidiary of Atlas Mara, in its quest to emerge as the biggest financial institution on the continent

READ ALSO: FG Admits Revenues Crashing, Says Nigeria Faces Hard Times

The lender’s acquisition of 78.15 percent shareholding in African Banking Corporation of Botswana Limited (BancABC Botswana, a subsidiary of Atlas Mara Limited, ABC Holdings Limited is coming barely three weeks after it got approval to buy South African bank, Gro bank Limited.

According to a statement by Access Bank on Monday, it has entered into a definite and binding agreement with
Atlas Mara Limited, ABC Holdings Limited for a 78.15 percent stake in BancABC Botswana.

The final ratification is subject to regulatory approvals and customary conditions precedent, adding that the transaction should be completed before the end of the second quarter of 2021.

Atlas Mara is the parent company of Union Bank of Nigeria Plc and is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE).

Managing Director, Access Bank Herbert Wigwe said, “We remain committed to a disciplined and thoughtful expansion strategy in Africa, which we believe will create strong, sustainable returns for our shareholders and stakeholders at large over the medium and long term, ”.

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FBN QUEST

FBNQuest Recommends Commercial Papers and Bonds as Stable Funding Sources for SMEs and Corporates

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FBNQuest Merchant Bank, the investment banking and asset management group of FBN Holdings Plc, is recommending commercial papers and bonds to corporate issuers seeking to raise working capital, expansion capital, refinance expensive debt and better match their cash obligations with revenues.

READ ALSO: Mastercard To Buy Digital ID Firm Ekata For $850m

Speaking at the latest edition of the”Leading Conversations with FBNQuest” webinar series, Oluseun Olatidoye, Head Capital Markets, FBNQuest, noted that many companies do not take advantage of Nigeria’s growing commercial paper and bond market to access stable funds that match their capital needs.

“Even though interest rates have trended higher in the first quarter of this year, there is still significant scope for many companies to access cheaper and more stable funding from investors who are seeking well-run businesses with predictable cashflows to invest in” said Olatidoye.

The webinar with the theme ‘Funding through Commercial Papers and Bonds’ was hosted to engage corporates and investors on the opportunities within issuing and investing in commercial papers and bonds.

Other speakers included Sumit Jain, Senior Executive Director at Valency International, a leading food ingredient supply chain company. He echoed the sentiment about the benefits of issuing commercial papers.

“We believe that corporates can lower the interest paid on bank debts by up to 4 percentage points by issuing commercial papers. Loans also offer other tremendous benefits in the current macroeconomic environment” said Sumit Jain.

Nigeria’s capital market has recorded a flurry of corporate commercial papers and bond issues since a sharp decline in interest rates in the third quarter of 2020. “We think the market conditions have just cast the spotlight on a financing option that discerning companies should consider.

We look forward to working with our clients to navigate the process to issuing CPs and bonds and therefore unlocking the efficiency and convenience that these instruments offer” stated Olatidoye. 

As a leading investment banking institution, FBNQuest has advised on the issuance of several commercial papers transactions for organisations such as Valency Agro Nigeria Limited, Mixta Real Estate plc, Dangote Cement plc, Nigerian Breweries plc (NB), Lafarge Africa plc, Flour Mills of Nigeria plc (FMN), Wema Bank plc, and UACN Property Development Company plc (UPDC) to mention a few. 

These transactions add to the organisations impressive portfolio of organisations it has supported, and once again highlights its capabilities in the successful execution of sizeable capital market and commercial debt transactions.

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Agro-processing

Eight States To Benefit From FG’s Agro-Processing Zones Programme

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The Federal Government has announced plans to launch a special agro-industrial processing zones (SAPZ) programme in 7 states of the federation, including the FCT.

READ ALSO: SON Plans Pact To Train SME’s On Standard Products

Laolu Akande, spokesman of Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, made this known in a statement in Abuja.

He said the project is in partnership with the African Development Bank (AfDB) and other stakeholders in the agric sector, including the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Bank of Industry (BOI).

The programme is aimed at concentrating agro-processing activities in demarcated areas to boost productivity and integrate production, processing and marketing of selected commodities.

Akande said Osinbajo was briefed on the progress of the project in a meeting attended by Mohammed Nanono, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, and Niyi Adebayo, his counterpart in the Industry, Trade and Investment Ministry.

Under the programme, the federal government will demarcate areas across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to establish about 140 agro-processing centres.

He said the centres will be provided with basic infrastructure such as water, electricity and roads as well as facilities for skills training, while small-holder farmers in the catchment areas will be linked to markets across the value chain.

Akande said seven states — Ogun, Oyo, Imo, Cross River, Kano, Kaduna, Kwara — and the FCT have been selected for the first phase of the project.

Speaking on the progress recorded so far, Toda Atsuko, AfDB’s acting Vice-President, Agriculture, Human and Social Development, said the bank in collaboration with other stakeholders is ready to start the first phase of the SAPZ programme, having completed a joint appraisal mission across the 36 states.

Atsuko commended the administration of Presidential Muhammadu Buhari for its efforts, adding that the plan will create jobs, and leverage technology with significant youth participation.

“I am very pleased to see that work has advanced and quite a bit is already being done. There is a need to synergize really concretely with Green Imperative (which is the partnership with the Brazilians), I think there are areas where these two programmes can complement each other,” he said.

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SON

SON Plans Pact To Train SME’s On Standard Products

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SON Plans Pact With Kwara Govt, To Train SME’s On Standard Products

In a quest to promote Small Scale Industries and businesses, the Standard Organization of Nigeria, SON, is set to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Kwara State government to educate small scale industries on standard products.

READ ALSO: FIRS: States Mull Digital Tax Technology As Revenue Shortfalls Hit 40%

The Governor of Kwara State Governor, Mallam Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq said manufacturing is an important means of reducing unemployment in Nigeria, and his State is set to partner SON in this regard.

Receiving the Director-General of Standard Organization of Nigeria, Farouk Salim, the Governor said manufacturers should receive more support to make international standard products, thereby boosting exports and creating jobs.

Stressing further, the governor said the present administration would encourage small and medium scale businesses in the state and partner SON to uphold standards.

DG, SON, Salim, said he was in the state to launch the organisation’s new multi-million naira office complex and inspect some manufacturing companies in the state.

The DG however appealed to the state government to provide supportive infrastructure manufacturers and other businesses in the state.

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FIRS

FIRS: States Mull Digital Tax Technology As Revenue Shortfalls Hit 40%

by with No Comment Businessfinance

Heads of Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) of the 36 states of the federation on Monday gathered in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, to consider ways of adapting new technology and Innovations available to improve revenue collection in their various states.

READ ALSO: Dangote Commits $700m To Sugar Production

The new development is prompted by the findings by the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) that tax collected from contact-intensive taxes fell by an average of 40 per cent across all states in Nigeria during the period of the lockdown.

The Secretariat of the Forum organized a programme tagged: NGF’s Technology and Tax event to help facilitate the scale up of modern, taxpayer-friendly, and technology-driven revenue administrations in all States of the federation that will be capable of providing world-class services; characterized by efficient, paperless operations, and equipped with ICT-enabled risk-based enforcement capable of optimising their revenue mobilization strategies.

Director General of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum Secretariat, Asishana Bayo Okauru hinted that the figure was the outcome of research conducted by the Secretariat last year.

He said the result was a big lesson which exposed the criticality of internet-based business support systems and payment platforms for the automation of all back-end operational processes and payments across all revenue streams.

Okauru also noted that the lessons learnt from the research showed that most contact-intensive taxes are at risk, adding that all revenue administrations need to move to a digital future.

“Lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic have pointed to one direction – that all revenue administrations need to move to a digital future.

“Specifically for tax authorities, one big lesson that we have learnt is the criticality of internet-based business support systems and payment platforms for the automation of all back-end operational processes and payments across all revenue streams.

“From our research last year, we already know that most contact-intensive taxes are at risk, given the lessons we learnt during the period of the lockdown where taxes collected from contact-intensive taxes fell by an average of 40 per cent across all States in Nigeria.

“Coupled with a weak environment for tax policy and tax legitimacy, low technological integration in tax administration has undermined efforts to mobilise domestic revenues in the country.

“This has undermined the capacity of tax authorities to collect taxes efficiently and the ability of taxpayers to meet their tax responsibilities conveniently” he said.

Also speaking, Mohammad Nami, the Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), stressed the need to look inwards on how to improve the revenue of the states to augment the shortfall of allocations from the Federation Account, insisted that taxation all over the world has always been the most reliable and sustainable source of government revenue if well harnessed and effectively administered.

Nami regretted that the reliance on oil revenue in the previous years has exposed the country to huge revenue challenges and resulted in poor budget implementation across the three tiers of government.

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Dangote Cement

Dangote Commits $700m To Sugar Production

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The management of Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc has said it is committing over $700m to its sugar projects to support the Backward Integration Policy of the Federal Government to make Nigeria self-sufficient in sugar production.

READ ALSO: Congratulations to our CAC Formalization Grant beneficiaries!

According to a statement issued by Dangote Industries Limited, the company disclosed this to visiting members of the Nasarawa House of Assembly last weekend.

The company noted that Nigeria was one of the sub-Saharan Africa’s largest importers of sugar, second only to South Africa with an annual import of over $337m.

The Dangote Sugar management however, assured the lawmakers that with the completion of its sugar projects in Nasarawa and Adamawa under the BIP, the nation would be saved more than half of the forex expended on sugar imports annually.

It added that the investment would also lift its people as other people-oriented infrastructures would come with the sugar projects.

The state lawmakers commended the Dangote Group for choice of the state for the project and the accelerated pace with which the project was being executed, despite occasional delays arising from communal disagreements.

General Manager for the BIP, Dangote Sugar, John Beverley said when the factory was fully operational, it would have the capacity to crush 12,000 tons of cane per day, while 90MW power would be generated for both the company’s use and host communities.

He also disclosed that some 500km roads in all would be constructed to ease transportation within the vicinity.

He solicited the support of the lawmakers in controlling the menace of land encroachment by settlers and itinerant farmers.

The Speaker of the Nasarawa State House of Assembly, Ibrahim Abdullah, and his team members, who were conducted round the company’s 78,000 hectares BIP in Tunga Awe Local Government Area commended the company for the project.

Abdullah noted that it would not only open up opportunities in the state but in Africa as a whole, and said the lawmakers were ready to partner and support the company towards the realisation of the sugar project through relevant legislations.

When the phase II of the project is completed, according to the company, it will make it the largest sugar refining plant in Africa.

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