FG awards Otu as 2024 most MSMEs-friendly governor in South-South

The Federal Government has awarded Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State as the 2024 Most MSMEs-friendly (Micro, Small and Medium-scale Enterprises) Governor of the Year in the South-South Region.

The award, which conferred on Governor Otu at the National MSME Conference 2024 in Abuja recently, was presented by Tajudeen Abass, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, on behalf of President Bola Tinubu.

Speaking shortly after the award, the Speaker congratulated Governor Oti for his MSME exploits in the State, staying tops in the region and setting the pace of leadership for others to follow in the sector.

BusinessDay reports that ghe award presentation was witnessed by George Akume, Secretary General of the Federation; Doris Uzoka-Anite, Honorable Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment; Hannatu Musawa, Minister of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy and Charles Odii, Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN).

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The award was received by the representative of the Governor, Paddy Egbede, the State Commissioner for Wealth Creation and Employment, who was accompanied by the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of MEDA, Great Ogban, and the Chairman of MEDA Board, Essessien Edem.

Egbede however lauded the organizers of the National MSME Conference while stating that the award would be a motivation to do more, adding that the State Government had prioritised MSME development as a corridor to economic growth.

It was gathered that the Cross River State Government had in recent times changed the economic landscape of the State by empowering MSMEs with the right resources to boost their businesses, chief among them, was N1 billion commitment to developing MSMEs in the State.

The 2024 National MSME Conference, the brainchild of the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of SMEDAN, is themed ‘Grow Nigerian – Sustaining a digital and innovation-driven economy’, is a clarion call for stakeholders to embrace the power of SMEs in the quest for economic growth.