Access Bank Announces N30bn Initiative For 4 Million Women, Youth-Owned Businesses in Nigeria
- Access Bank is committing about N30 billion to empowering small businesses in Nigeria
- The bank said nearly four million firms owned by women and youth would benefit
- The bank is providing the loan in partnership with the Office of the Vice President at a 15 to 17% interest rate
Pascal Oparada has over a decade of experience covering Tech, Energy, Stocks, Investments, and Economy.
Access Bank has announced that it will partner with the Office of the Vice President to provide N30 billion for four million Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), women, and youth businesses in Nigeria.
Source: Facebook
The bank's Group Managing Director, Roosevelt Ogbonna, revealed this while fielding questions from journalists after a meeting with Vice President Kashim Shetimma in Abuja.
Women-owned businesses are to be treated specially
Reports say Ogbonna disclosed that the bank would provide the N30 billion to MSMEs at a discounted rate of between 15 and 17%.
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The scheme would benefit 700,000 to one million, while four million would benefit in the long run, Ogbonna stated.
According to the Access Bank boss, the Vice President directed that special attention be paid to women-run businesses.
Ogbonna said:
"We do agree and determine that about 66 per cent of MSMEs in Nigeria are owned by women and youths. And one of the challenges they faced was access to finance.
Working with the Office of the Vice-President, we agreed today that Access Bank will provide about N30 billion towards supporting MSMEs and youths."
Alongside the loan, businesses to given capacity-building
Per the bank, beneficiaries of the loan would undergo capacity-building to enable them to optimize the loan. At the same time, the companies would be trained to help them scout for new markets for the products or services they offer.
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The Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Job Creation and MSMEs, Office of the Vice President, Temitola Adekunle, said the Nigerian Government is dedicated to partnering with the private sector to support small businesses.
African countries with the highest number of women-owned businesses
An earlier report by Legit.ng has revealed that the 2021 Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs ranked Botswana, Uganda, and Ghana as the countries with the highest number of female entrepreneurs for the third consecutive year.
Botswana came tops with a 38.5 per cent increase in women who run businesses in the country, followed by Uganda at 38.4 and Ghana at 37.2 per cent.
BusinessInsider said the index is calculated as a percentage of total business owners. This ranking edition spotlights the impact of women's businesses on the socio-economic contribution of women entrepreneurs across the globe, including in Africa, and it gives insights into the elements propelling and hindering their progress.
Botswana is among African countries with a large number of women entrepreneurs
In some countries in Africa, the progress of women is restricted by less supportive entrepreneurial conditions, lack of funding, fewer opportunities for tertiary education, and structural barriers.
Botswana scored 15 among the top economies in the world regarding advancement outcomes for women, especially concerning performance income. It ranked higher than developed countries like Canada, the United States, New Zealand, Switzerland, and Australia.
"Apply Now": Access Bank announces exciting job vacancies for graduates, releases application link
Legit.ng reported earlier that Access Bank has started accepting applications from Nigerians for its entry-level trainee programme, which gives graduates a pathway into the organization.
The bank announced this in a statement published on its website.
The entry is for three divisions of the bank, which are ERG (Enterprise Resource Group), CIBD (Corporate and Investment Banking Division), and CBD (Commercial Banking Division)
Source: Legit.ng
