Anambra begins N2bn SMEs loan disbursement

Gov Willie Obiano has said that small business owners in Anambra state now have course to cheer as he has inaugurated the Anambra Small Business Agency (ASBA) and the commencement of the disbursement of the N2bn Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development(MSMEs)Development Fund.

The fund, according to the governor was the state’s quota of the N220bn MSMEs fund domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria by the Federal Government.

He observed that lack of funding was discovered to have been the bane of small businesses but will change with the availability of the MSMEs Development Fund which can be accessed by serious/committed private enterprise operators.

According to the governor, “I am happy that the scheme has taken off in ernest because we worked hard to ensure that we meet the relevant statutory requirement and set up ASBA to superintend over small business activities. Micro Small and Medium Enterprises constitute the major drivers of my administration’s vision to engender aggressive economic growth and touch the lives of the average citizen of the state positively.

I have no doubt that their fortunes will turn around for good and that the local economy will feel the positive impact in no distant time.”

He described the exercise as a consummation of his efforts since the inception of his government, to devise a means of directly engaging the MSMEs subsector in the task of growing the state GDP and creating employment and wealth opportunities for the people.

He charged the staff and management of ASBA to ensure effective implementation such that all bottlenecks militating against easy access to such intervention by SMMEs and to establish the state as the hub of SME empowerment in the country, as well as proper monitoring of beneficiaries and recovery of the funds.