MSME stakeholders get Trust Fund

The Africa Rural Finance Development Company Ltd. (AFRIDECO) has said that Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) stakeholders have established a Trust Fund for beneficiaries of MSME intervention funds.

The fund comprises All Farmers Association of Nigeria, Cooperative Federation of Nigeria, Nigerian Association of Small Scale Industrialists and National Association of Micro Finance Banks.

The AFRIDECO Executive Director, Dr Abdalla Yakub, who made this known in an interview in Abuja on Wednesday, said the trust fund would ensure that the grassroots benefited maximally from MSME intervention funds.
According to him, the various MSME intervention funds by the Federal Government, World Bank and other donor agencies inspire the establishment of the fund.

He said the fund would become functional on Jan. 15, and projected subscription rate of 30 million clients for the fund.
The executive director said it had capacity to register 30 million to 40 million “bottom of the pyramid Nigerians in the first quarter.

“These developments encouraged us as obvious beneficiaries of these facilities and making sure that we benefit maximally from these programmes to establish a trust fund as a facilitating agent.

“It galvanised members of the various associations in the subsector to adopt a common approach to ensure that the underprivileged benefit from these emerging MSMEs funding opportunities.

“This led to the formation of what we considered Commonwealth of MSME stakeholders under the facilitation and coordination of AFRIDECO.

“We have set the take-off date to be Jan. 15 projecting 30 million clients and subscription is set at affordable amount for members,’’ Yakub said.

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), non-governmental organisations and corporate bodies were also part of AFRIDECO.

Yakub said that the MSME Trust Fund Ltd RC 1230830 would act as the fund manager investment platform on behalf of the 60 million members of the MSME Stakeholders Commonwealth.

“MSMEs MFB Ltd RC 919521, a CBN licenced MFB and Micro finance self-regulation platform will serve more than 65 million Nigerians who are in the bottom of the pyramid.

“A Cash passport and Mobile Money RC 1214966 called a MyCard will be provided to hasten the process of financial inclusion to our members.

“It will drive e-commerce, health insurance, social security and easy access to credit and other bouquet of financial inclusion incentives to financially excluded and underserved in the country,’’ he added.

He also said that AFRIDECO would provide opportunities for financial inclusion and e-commerce for the nation’s huge `bottom of the pyramid’ population.

(NAN)