MON, AUG 10 2020-theG&BJournal– The Federal Government is rolling out, under the Nigeria Economic Sustainability Plan (NESP), support schemes for MSMEs nationwide, including a guaranteed off-take scheme that guarantees off-take of priority products, and an MSMEs survival fund that will make payroll support available to save jobs and sustain local production.
Details of how to access these support fund is yet to be unveiled but the Federal Government says members of the implementation Committee will soon do the unveiling. The chair of the Committee is the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Ambassador Mariam Kaagum. Ibukun Awosika, Founder, Chair Centre and Chairman of First Bank Nigeria is the Vice Chair of the Committee.
The first track of the scheme is aimed at sustaining about 300,000 jobs in 100, 000 MSMEs- by government’s estimate-in production of prioritised products such as processed food, personal protective equipment, hand sanitisers, face-masks, face-shields, shoe covers and pharceticuals.
The Track 1 programme will be implemented by the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and its cost estimate is N15 billion.
The Track 2 objective is to establish the SME Survival Fund which is projected to sustain at least 500, 000 jobs and 50, 000 SMEs. It will be implemented by the Steering Committee on MSME Survival Fund, Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and the Bank of Industry using payroll support system to save jobs and ensure continued local production.
The estimated cost projections are N50 billion for payroll support, N200 billion loans to artisans and N10 billion support to private transport companies and workers over a three months period.
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