Repositioning  SMEs for rapid sustainable growth

Shade Bembatoum-Young’s African Sustainable SME Export Trade Solutions (ASSETS) and African Hub International are out to help find solutions to the challenges Nigerian SMEs are confronted with.

The significance of SMEs in the African context cannot be overplayed.  A myriad of factors underscore this claim. SMEs are generally less capital-intensive and more labour-intensive. They are best suited for countries of Africa and Asia and most of the developing world having abundant supply of low-cost manpower and bountiful natural resources. They provide large-scale employment, ensure equitable distribution of income and facilitate effective mobilisation of resources of capital and skills which would otherwise remain unutilised, particularly in rural and backward areas.

Some developing countries in Asia and India have already established a niche in SME development a strategy and provide excellent support in product development, R&D, financial instruments, infrastructure, marketing and export development. India is fast emerging as a global hub in manufacturing sector as well as for labour-intensive knowledge-oriented business.

But Nigerian SMEs are in deep trouble as they are bedevilled by lack of appreciation by the government which does not recognize their roles; difficulty in accessing bank credit; lack of transparency, high transaction cost, and poor institutional support.

They are also hampered by market access constraints and marginal focus on non-oil business.

African Sustainable SME Export Trade Solutions (ASSETS)   and African Hub International are out to help find solutions to the challenges Nigerian SMEs are faced with. They are coming up with  a workshop tagged ‘Dollars  and Sense: Repositioning  SMEs   as Catalysts to Achieve  Rapid  Sustainable   Growth in the Non-Oil Sector’ on Thursday, October  13, 2016,  at African Hub International  4 Sule Abuka Street off Opebi  Road, Ikeja.   The workshop costs between N12, 000 and N15, 000.

The workshops, according to Shade Bembatoun, ASSETS CEO, will address the following questions which it believes SMEs meditate on daily:
1. How can I switch from import to export?
2. Can SMEs become major players in the non-oil export value chain?
3. Should my company get involved in export?
4. How do I know if my product is export ready?
5. If I don’t have a product yet what can I do?
6. If I am a marketer can I get involved in export?