The African Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (AASME) has advised the Federal Government to pay attention to the development of micro, small and medium businesses to grow the economy.
Darlington Kalu, president general, AASME, who made the call in a letter to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, affirmed that Nigeria’s development, like any other country, depends on the growth of MSMEs, which according to him is the engine of growth of any economy.
Kalu, in an interview with BusinessDay, on the sidelines of the 2023, ‘World MSME Day,’ held at the African MSME Hub, Aba, Abia State, decried Nigeria’s business environment, which according to him is hostile.
He said that the country has failed to provide the citizens with electricity, good roads, health facilities, security, shelter, among other necessary amenities.
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According to Kalu, Nigerians pay about 500 percent higher than the approaved fees to obtain international passport.
“In Police stations, citizens spend money to report casses, mobilise the personnel to effect an arrest and yet when the suspect is brought to the station, he would bribe his way out.”
For the survival of the MSMEs, the AASME president general urged President Tinubu to implement the National Development Plan (NDP) 2021-2025, which he said recommended that the Federal Government should commit 30 percent of its annual total budget to MSME development, while the State and Local Governments are expected to contribute 20 and 10 percent of their annual total budgets to the development of MSMEs, respectively.
He urged the Federal Government to as a matter of urgency, rehabilitate the country’s refineries and stop importation of refined crude into the country, which he said has brought hardship on the people.
Kalu appealed to the organised labour to shelve their proposed national strike, and work towards building a better economy for the country.
