Funding is arguably one of the biggest challenges small businesses in Nigeria face, the problem is, however, not unique to Nigeria alone. The World Bank estimates that “50% of SMEs lack access to finance, which hinders their growth”.
This does not mean there are no places and organizations small businesses in Nigeria can raise capital, here are 9 of such organizations.
1. Bank of Industry
Bank of Industry Limited (BOI) is arguably Nigeria’s largest successful development financing institution. Providing financial assistance for the establishment of large, medium and small projects.
Its programmes include matching funds and managed funds, many of which target small and medium scale enterprises. An example is the Federal Department of Agriculture (FDA) Cottage Fund.
2. Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme
The Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme is a 12-month programme that will occur every year for the next 10 years.
Each programme cycle begins with applications from January 1st until March 1st. The application portal opens and ushers in a new year for the programme and for prospective start-ups.
Applications are from various sectors including but not limited to;
Agriculture, ICT, Housing, Media, Education, Transportation, Textiles, Manufacturing.
Find out more about the programme at http://tonyelumelufoundation.org/teep/
3. Dangote Foundation
Dangote Foundation in conjunction with the Bank of Industry (BOI) provides a 5 billion Naira matching fund, which could be accessed by Enterprises and Limited Liability Companies engaged in the Manufacturing, Agro-Processing and Merchandising sectors for made in Nigeria goods.
Click Here for more information on getting funding from the Dangote Foundation.
4. EchoVC
EchoVC partners provide a capital fund to leading technologies, teams and businesses in sub-Saharan Africa, North America and south-east Asia.
Average investment size ranges from $25,000 to several million dollars depending on the stage of opportunity and capital needs of the business.
Go to http://www.echovc.com/ for more information
5. CCHub
Besides providing a co-working space, CCHub also has in partnership with the Tony Elemelu Foundation, a program since 2012 to award pre-seed grants of $5,000 to 20 technology ideas/ventures targeted at typical social challenges in Nigeria.
Furthermore, it provides in partnership with Omidyar Network, Bank of Industry and Venture Garden Group a 1 billion naira social innovation fund.
Find out more at http://cchubnigeria.com/
6. Central Bank Textile Intervention Fund
The Central bank of Nigeria in conjunction with the Bank of Industry earmarked 235 billion naira intervention fund particularly for refinancing and restructuring of
banks’ loans to the manufacturing sector.
The funds meant for the development of the manufacturing sector of the Nigerian economy by improving access to credit to manufacturers,.
More information HERE.
7. Seedstars Africa
The Switzerland company invests up to 1 Million dollars in emerging market startups through its exclusive startup competition in over 65 countries. The last competition held in Nigeria was for young Startups (less than two years old) with a working product, and have raised less than $500,000.
More here: http://www.seedstarsworld.com/
8. Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN)
SMEDAN is charged with stimulating, monitoring and coordinating the development of the MSMEs sub-sector.
It also helps facilitate access to loans from her partnering financial institutions and from other specialized microfinance schemes.
Check http://www.smedan.gov.ng for more information.
9. African Women’s Development Fund
The African Women’s development fund AWDF supports local, national and regional women’s organizations.
The organization provides funds for work related to any of it’s six thematic areas; women’s human rights’, HIV & AIDS, Health & reproductive rights, governance peace & security, arts, culture & sports and economic empowerment & livelihoods.
It also has a Small Grants Programme operating in Ghana, Uganda, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria that supports small, grassroots African women’s groups.
Proposals are made online HERE
Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has commenced moves towards a possible collaboration and synergy with Guangdong SMEs in China, aimed at technology transfer to small enterprises in Nigeria.
Chairman, Governing Board, SMEDAN, Femi Pedro, said this at the just concluded 15th edition of the China International Small and Medium Enterprises Fair (CISMEF) 2018, which was attended by 21 Nigerian Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
Pedro said the collaborative initiative is being planned through the Africa-Guangdong Business Association (AGBA) window for the promotion of SMEs in the country.
In a statement, SMEDAN’s spokesman, Ibrahim Mohammed, said about 25 Made-in-Nigeria products were on display at the Nigerian pavilion at the Fair spanning foods, garments, agro-commodities, arts/crafts and leather works with over 3000 SMEs from various countries in attendance.
The statement added that the Director General of SMEDAN, Dr. Dikko Umaru Radda, further requested for areas of collaboration, particularly cluster development, capacity building and trade partnership beyond the Fair.
He said the participation of Nigerian SMEs at the Fair would have a great impact on the economy of the nation, adding the SMEs that attended were able to identify new markets and modern technology to improve their production
Radda added that SMEs were also able to discover new investments and business opportunities.
According to him, Nigeria’s showing at this year’s edition of CISMEF has left an indelible mark about various business opportunities that abound in the country especially,
“in our naturally endowed agro-commodities, especially ginger, Shea butter, coconut oil, black seed and turmeric which were rated very highly. Identification of niche markets to focus on e.g. agro-commodities and solid minerals.”
Meanwhile, 9 SMEs from Nigeria was said to have been successfully matched with Chinese companies who are interested in their respective products at a Cross-Matchmaking forum aimed at offering opportunities to connect Chinese SMEs with overseas customers, and increase their presence in the global market.
To inspire and empower youth-led micro businesses in Lagos State, Rise Networks, Nigeria’s leading Social Enterprise in Youth and Educational Development with the kind support of the Lagos State Government is staging a Lagos-wide business pitch competition called “Local Governments Youth SME Competition,” and invites young Lagosians between the ages of 18 and 40 to send in their applications for a chance to win N50,000 each.
The competition, a business pitch contest, is part of activities lined up to celebrate the Lagos Youth Week in commemoration of the UN International Youth Day 2018 and will be held across the 5 Administrative Divisions covering the 20 local government areas of Lagos State namely: Ikeja, Badagry, Ikorodu, Lagos Island and Epe.
The competition which starts by 10am on the 6th of August and ends on the 10th of August will be held in the 5 different divisions of Lagos at the following venues and dates - Ikeja Division comprising Agege, Ifako-Ijaiye, Kosofe, Mushin, Alimosho, Oshodi-Isolo, Somolu Local Governments will be held on the 6th of August, 2018 at the Agege Stadium. Badagry Division comprising Ojo, Amuwo-Odofin, AJeromi-Ifelodun and Badagry Local Government will be held on 7th of August, 2018 at Badagry Grammar School.
Ikorodu Division comprising Ikorodu Local Government will be held on the 8th of August,2018 at the Ikorodu Youth Centre, Ita Elewa. Lagos Island Division comprising Lagos Island, Lagos Mainland, Surulere, Apapa and Eti-Osa Local Governments will be held on 9th August, 2018 at Rowe Park, Yaba. Epe Division comprising Epe and Ibeju-Lekki Local Governments will be held on 10th of August, at the Epe Youth Centre.
Founder of Rise Networks and Social Entrepreneur in Youth Development, Toyosi Akerele-Ogunsiji in a media parley ahead of the event stated that at least 100,000 young people will benefit from the competition. "The Program will cover an entire Week across all the 20 Local Governments and 5 Divisions of Lagos State, the 5th Largest Economy and we expect at least 50,000 - 100,000 students, young professionals, young artisans, young traders, graduates of tertiary institutions, young entrepreneurs to participate in the various Events lined up for 2018 Lagos Youth Week," Akerele-Ogunsiji said.
Registrations for the Local Governments Youth SME Competition start from June 30th and will continue till August 3rd. To apply, interested persons should send their name, address, their business ideas and a short text stating why they need the N50,000 to 07060545018.
Initiatives like these ones are telling on the continued commitment of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode's to driving economic growth through the empowerment of small businesses at the grassroots levels of Lagos State.
For more information visit www.risenetworks.org.
These are indeed exciting times for SMES in Africa as Zhijie Zheng, President of the #ChinaDevelopmentBank was at #UBAhouse with Tony Elumelu today with a 10 man delegation from his bank to sign a $100 million facility & partnership with UBA Group to invest in SMES and infrastructure across
Check out photos below
Trade Expo Africa (TEXA) is the first African B2B trade show, dedicated to African business owners & business professionals. It was established to showcase African Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) operating in the United States of America (USA) and other African Countries.
Participating SMEs may be based in the U.S. or their home country. TEXA also aims to boost export opportunities in Africa by leveraging on The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which is a United States Trade Act, enacted on 18th May, 2000 as Public Law 106 of the 200th Congress. The purpose of this legislation is to assist the economies of sub-Saharan Africa and to improve economic relations between the United States and these regions with the possibility of exporting qualifying products into the U.S. duty-free.
Other side attractions include:
- Enterprise Showcase Segment;
- Business Clinic Sessions;
- Cocktail & Networking;
- Fashion Show.
Exhibition date: Friday, October 13th – Sunday, October 15th, 2017
Venue: Hyatt Regency, 1200 Louisiana Str, Houston Texas, 77002.
Who To Attend
- SMEs in African countries willing to introduce exportable products into the US market & other African countries;
- African SMEs based in the US seeking increased visibility & market share;
- Intending entrepreneurs seeking viable business ideas or partnerships;
- Entrepreneurs seeking investments in Africa.
Why Attend?
- Gain an overview of the market and industry
- Find new markets and opportunities
- Follow latest trends and innovations
- Get new ideas for your business
- See novelties
- Evaluate products and suppliers
- Compare and discuss specific issues, features, prices and conditions
- Place orders and negotiate contracts
- Look for specific products and services
- Find information to solve specific problems
- Evaluate your competitors
- Learn
- Gather suggestions regarding your own business
- Generate new business contacts
- Network
- Meet colleagues from your own industry (politics, business)
Why Exhibit?
- Introduce your product to a new and thriving market;
- Increase your network;
- Brand your business;
- Generate sales leads;
- Reach thousands of qualified buyers;
- Generate other business leads;
- Introduce new products and services;
- Giveaway opportunities;
Contact Details
Website: www.tradeexpoafrica.com
Youtube: Trade Expo Africa
Email: info@tradeexpoafrica.com
Twitter: @tradeexpoafrica
Instagram: @tradeexpoafrica
LinkedIn: Trade Expo Africa
Facebook: www.facebook.com/TradeExpoAfrica
Phone: +1832 554 6082, +234 903 550 2779
Subscribe to:
Posts
(
Atom
)
