Emefiele Pledges CBN Readiness To Shore Up Interventions For SMEs

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Mr. Godwin Emefiele, governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has pledged the bank’s readiness to increase its develop­ment finance interventions to further support start-ups and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the country. Emefiele made the pledge while deliver­ing the 51st convocation lecture of the Uni­versity of Lagos, on Monday, noting that increased access to finance for start-ups and SMEs was highly essential for the na­tion’s economy to grow.

Speaking on the topic, ‘National Development and Knowledge Economy in the Digital Age: Leapfrogging SMEs in the 21st Century’, he stressed that special con­sideration should be given to the strengthening of physical and ICT infrastructure to en­able SMEs perform more ef­ficiently and become globally competitive.


He highlighted the critical role of vibrant and growing SMEs to the growth of the economy and the creation of jobs for Nigerian youths, noting that special consider­ation needed to be given to the strengthening of physical and ICT infrastructure to enable SMEs perform more efficient­ly and become globally com­petitive.


While noting that the po­tential of SMEs in enhanc­ing economic growth was hampered by limited access to finance, inadequate infra­structure and poor digital penetration, Emefiele en­joined the government and the private sector to provide more support in addressing the challenges of SMEs in the country.


Specifically, as users of new technology, he urged that policies should incentivise the adoption of innovations that will improve SMEs competi­tiveness and productivity. He also tasked all rele­vant stakeholders to deepen reforms that will improve human capital development through skills enhancement and proper linkage of re­search to the SME sector.


Citing examples of other climes that have continued to harness the benefits of the knowledge economy to accelerate economic growth, through the contributions of SMEs, Emefiele charged tertiary institutions in the country to tap into the educa­tional trends that are signifi­cant drivers of productivity in advanced and emerging mar­kets, in order to reshape the existing curriculum, enhance the learning experience of students and foster innova­tion amongst the faculty and staff in Nigerian institutions.

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