By Samuel
The Bank of Agriculture (BOA) in collaboration with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) is set to boost the capacity of micro-businesses across the country, through its Matching Fund Programme.
The Matching Fund Programme will provide credit facilities for small businesses; agribusiness inclusive, as a means of enhancing sectorial development through job creation.
The beneficiaries must be pre-registered under the SMEDAN and will be granted access to loans worth N1.2 million to N5 million.
This was contained in a release issued by the Corporate Affairs Unit of the SMEDAN in Abuja.
The first phase of the programme will see the opening of the programme portal, with the Bank of Agriculture as the loan disburser.
According to the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of SMEDAN, Dr. Dikko Radda, “Target beneficiaries for this programme shall be labor-intensive micro or small enterprises (MSEs), operating in the real sector.
“These shall ideally be innovative value-added products that are establishing a footprint in the Nigerian market, and require additional funds to increase output”.
He further noted that both agencies are determined to further the interest of Nigerian SMEs, through the success of this project.
Radda, therefore, called for applications from all suitably-qualified MSEs located in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Kaduna and Oyo states to apply for the programme.