By LUCY OGALUE

Mr Charles Odii, Director-General, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), has expressed the Federal Government’s readiness to remove obstacles hindering the growth of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

Odii, in a statement, said the mandate is in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope economic prosperity agenda.

He said this following a meeting with the president, where he discussed the agency’s ‘GROW Nigerian’ strategy, designed to offer SMEs essential guidance, resources, opportunities, and workforce support to thrive.

He quoted Tinubu as expressing commitment to SMEDAN’s core mandates of rural industrialisation, job creation, and livelihood enhancement at the meeting.

According to Odii, SMEs are central to the president’s mission to eradicate poverty and ensure prosperity reaches all corners of Nigeria.

The director-general said the president’s commitment was evident as they discussed SMEDAN’s GROW Nigerian strategy.

He said the strategy included plans to create an enabling environment for over 40 million small businesses, collectively providing over 60 million jobs.

“We are not only going to protect them from inflationary pressures, but we’ll also empower them to drive down such trends.

“We will work with sister government agencies to streamline regulations and optimise them for growth and productivity. We will remove obstacles that hinder formalisation and growth.

“With the strategy, SMEs will get affordable financing opportunities, access to lucrative domestic and international markets, tailored mentorship, and support to compete through capacity building for improved production standards,” he said.

According to Odii, the president expressed his support, and this is both exciting and reassuring. I am thankful to the president for his time and exemplary leadership.

He said: “President Tinubu’s assurance has reinvigorated my determination to passionately pursue SMEDAN’s mandate and deliver meaningful outcomes for small business owners nationwide.” (NAN)

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