BOI’s industrialisation drive hits Kogi

Olaoluwa said the gesture was to enable entrepreneurs harness the potential in the state to the industrial scale.

He also explained that apart from approving N44million for the deployment of off-grid micro system in Bisanti, a community in the state,  the bank had identified  SME clusters in areas such as shea butter, yam, soya bean, rice, sugar cane, melon, fish, groundnut and cassava.

According to him, the deployment of the solar- based technology in the state would help to provide energy need for the industry, particularly in segments that have no access to the national grid.

The BoI boss also said the objective of the interventions of the bank in the state was to promote job creation and rapid industrialisation.

He urged state entrepreneurs to avail themselves of the services of the 23 Business Development Service Providers (BDSPs) established in the North- Central geopolitical zone for the packaging of bankable business proposals.

While giving an update on the MSME fund which is jointly funded by the DFI and Kogi State, Olaoluwa noted that the bank received 263 loan applications amounting to N2.5 billion, while also approving 116 loans totalling N497.0 million.

“In terms of developmental impact, an estimated 615 direct and 683 indirect jobs, totalling 1,298 jobs, have been created so far,” he said.

Speaking on the economic potential of the state, he said the most valued assets of Niger State are its fertile land and water resources, being largely an agrarian state with agricultural products like shea nut, soya bean, groundnut, yam, cassava, rice, cotton and sesame seed, among others.

“The state is also blessed with mineral resources such as gold, copper, iron, silica, clay, marble, talc, feldspar, lead, kaolin, cassiterite, mica and granite. Niger State therefore has a great potential to support a wide range of agro-processing and other industries that can spur sustainable industrialisation and accelerated Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) development,” he further said.

Also speaking, one of the loan beneficiaries,  John Akanya, said he ventured into bread production in order to show to his people how standards could help to promote businesses.

Akanya, who is the immediate past director-general of Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), commended the bank for the transparent way in which loan application was being processed.

Oledibe Chidebere, who spoke on behalf Microcredit Beneficiaries in Niger State, said apart from the provision of loans, entrepreneurs in the state had learnt a great lesson on how to manage their businesses through numerous seminars organised by the bank.

“BoI has developed us both mentally and physically to meet up with the challenges that come on our way during the course of our businesses. Our educational and business orientation has changed based on the interaction, seminars and workshops organised by the bank,” he observed.