President Jonathan receiving Tissue Papers made by Students of Government Secondary School Garki Abuja at the 8th Annual MSME Finance Conference Entrepreneurship Award in Abuja organized under the CBN yesterday.
PRESIDENT JONATHAN'S REMARKS AT THE 8TH Annual CBN MSME's CONFERENCE www.shonnny.blogspot.com
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Excerpts;
1. I am delighted to join you here today at this 8th Annual Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Conference. Let me begin by commending the Management of the Central Bank for hosting this important conference yearly, in support of the Transformation Agenda of our administration and our joint commitment to inclusive growth and job creation.
2. Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are recognized, all over the world, as the engine of growth in any development oriented economy. Due to their inherent labour intensive production processes, they also provide a viable platform for job creation.
3. All over the developed world, the contribution of MSMEs to GDP averages about 47 percent. However, here in Nigeria, MSMEs account for only 10 percent of our GDP.As reported by the Small Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), there are about 17.3 million MSMEs in Nigeria compared to the over 40 million MSMEs in Indonesia, whose population is only a little greater than ours. Some of the reasons adduced for this disparity are the limited access to finance, low production technology, poor infrastructure and lack of market access.
4. Ladies and gentlemen, these challenges call for more concrete and concerted measures to enhance, and expand the activities of MSMEs in our country. The focus of this year's conference - Charting Ways to Resolve the Problem of Access to, and Cost of Finance to MSMEs in Nigeria - is, therefore, quite appropriate.