FIIRO, UNIDO strengthen partnership on SME development

The Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi (FIIRO) and United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) are strengthening partnerships to boost development of Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) sub-sector.

This long existing collaboration between the two organisations was reinforced when Gloria Elemo, director-general, FIIRO and its management, played host to Patrick Kormawa, UNIDO regional office director and representative to Nigeria and West Africa in Lagos, recently.

The history of UNIDO’s contact and collaboration with FIIRO dating back to 1968 was highlighted by Elemo, as well as contributions and impact on FIIRO’s human capital development, research and development projects and upgrading of facilities. Elemo also mentioned FIIRO’s achievements in the area of training and entrepreneurial development, particularly for the SME sector.

Kormawa said UNIDO’s relationship with FIIRO had again been resuscitated on account of his visit, and commented positively on some of the technologies that FIIRO had developed as well as the technology transfer services it was rendering. The focused areas of UNIDO as detailed by Kormawa include poverty reduction through activities centred on inclusive and sustainable development; human capacity building, renewable energy for rural and household electrification, and so on.

He also mentioned that UNIDO’s intervention in Nigeria cut across promotion of agro industrialisation, standardisation of process technologies and compliance by industries as well as partnerships on linkages of innovative technologies to industries.

Reeling out the various partnerships UNIDO had with the Federal Government of Nigeria, Kormawa said the skills-gap among women and youths was being closed through the Industrial Training Fund. Highlighting interventions in the area of agriculture in rural area, he said the partnership also involved working with women entrepreneurs, also mentioning that he could see areas of collaboration with FIIRO that could be explored such as equipment fabrication, human capacity development, building standards for equipment manufactured/fabricated in Nigeria.

OLUYINKA ALAWODE