Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), have made it known that it will continue to support Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, MSMEs in terms of job and wealth creations, as well as poverty alleviation in the country through its national empowerment scheme.
Acting Director General of the agency, Mr. Wale Fasanya gave the assurance at the just concluded 3-days agri-preneur training scheme-post training visit held at Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, Ogun state on Friday.
The 3-days training which begins on Wednesday through Friday was organized by SMEDAN, in partnership with the Ogun State Ministry of Agriculture.
Mr. Fasanya, while delivering his key-note address said the post-training visit is a
“follow-up on the Agribusiness development and empowerment programmed (ADEP), held last year October, which aim is to ascertain the training outcome/impact assessment, as well as identify challenges and rendering advisory services to the beneficiaries where necessary”.
He also claimed that the overall objective of the Post-Training is to obtain feedback on the previous training, which can be used in planning, further support and skill development.
Furthermore, the acting DG said other objectives include:
(i) To visit trained entrepreneurs in their places of business operations in order to get first-hand information on how they conduct their businesses and true status of their businesses.
(ii) To identify challenges faced by the entrepreneurs in the course of their businesses and offer advisory services where required during the visit.
(iii) To make pre and post training comparison of the entrepreneurs in order to establish impact/outcome had in their businesses with specific focus on job created, volume of production, turn over level, values addition, and utilization of opportunities, among others.
(iv) To promote market linkages between MSEs and local/regional markets.
He therefore urged participants to use the opportunity for the purpose of improving their businesses, while assuring MSMEs that its agency will continue to support their dreams in the area of job and wealth creation, as well as poverty alleviation.
Speaking on behalf of the sixteen cooperative societies present at the venue, Mr. Olubunmi Moses Agunrege from Ado-Ota LGA said many of their members who got the offer last year utilize the money accordingly, even though it’s not enough for their expectations.
Agunrege said the sum of two hundred and eighty five thousand naira given to each cooperative society at the last training to boost their agricultural work.
“Where there is more money in Agricultural business now, according to value chain, it’s processing, which is the capital utensil, because we need equipment, coupled with the challenges in terms of economy and struggling of things, it’s not easy.
“What we are now looking forward to is that we need access to equipment. Though we are also working towards purchasing of innovative mobile processing units, but finance has been the main challenge.
“Part of the challenges we are also facing is the issue of land-grabbers, herdsmen which is a national issues. If government can look into the aspect of insecurity and land-grabbers, we will have our way in making things turn around, and have food surplus in the country, most especially in Ogun state.”
He therefore call on the Federal, State and Local Governments, as well as SMEDAN and other stakeholders to rise up for their needs in other to make agriculture the priority for Nigerians
Also while speaking, the Senior Special Assistant to the governor on Agriculture, Dr Angel Adelaja-Kuye, said the training is a national agri-preneurship training scheme, which was set up in strengthening agri-businesses and making sure that people understands the power of structure, and cooperation among farmers.
Dr. Adelaja-Kuye stated further that the programme started through training to access to agriculture finance, and they were able to present certificates to all participants in the last three years of partnering with SMEDAN.
She therefore urged other members of cooperative societies across the state to come and register with SMEDAN and Ogun state ministry of Agriculture for support.
It was gathered that SMADAN, during their last training held at the Ogun State Tech-Hub in Abeokuta, empowered not less than sixteen Cooperative societies in Ogun state with training and cash support.
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