Federal Government of Nigeria says so far 660,320 Nano beneficiaries, representing more than 60% of the targeted 1 million, have received disbursements across Nigeria’s 774 local governments, with the remaining percentage undergoing verification.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Doris Uzoka-Anite, disclosed this over the weekend during an interactive session with beneficiaries of the Presidential Grant and Prospective Beneficiaries of the MSME Presidential Loan at the Metropolitan Hotel, Calabar, Cross River state capital.
Uzoka-Anite said that more than 700,000 applications have been submitted by loan seekers, including Manufacturers and Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
She noted that these applications are now in different stages of verification to ensure the information provided is complete, genuine, and accurate, emphasizing that once this verification process is finished, loan disbursements will begin promptly by September.
“The N200 billion Presidential Loans and Grant Scheme to revitalize our MSMEs and Manufacturers was announced in July 2023 by His Excellency President Bola Tinubu. The fund was divided into two; N125 billion was allocated to our MSMEs and N75 billion to our Manufacturers.
“The MSME portion of the programme the N125 billion fund was further shared into N50 billion in conditional grants for nano businesses (N50,000 each across 774 local governments) and N75 billion in loans for MSMEs and start-ups (N500,000 to N1 million at 9% interest, repayable in 36 months).
“With respect to our Manufacturers, N75 billion was allocated to provide loans of up to N1 billion at 9% interest, 60-month terms for equipment, and 12-month terms for working capital. These initiatives of Mr President aim
to support growth and employment, she said.
The presidential aide noted that the engagement with beneficiaries of the
Presidential Loans and Grant Scheme is not just a routine visit but part of government’s pledge to transparency, accountability, and effectiveness in the administration of public resources.
During his speech, Dr. Prince Michael Nku Abuo, the special adviser to the governor of Cross River state on intervention and grants, expressed gratitude to the governor for allocating funds to establish teams in every ward throughout the state to gather data from all 196 wards and submit it to Abuja.
Abuo, who serves as the state focal point for the presidential palliative program, emphasized that there is a monitoring system in place to assess how beneficiaries use the funds.
“We have been able to put them into clusters where we are going to get reports from the head of each cluster to ensure that they utilize the finances given to them and we are also going to provide other forms of support like training and capacity building, he said
