Director-general, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Dikko Umaru Radda, has commended Edo State governor, Godwin Obaseki, on his prudent allocation of the state’s limited resources to improve critical sectors such as infrastructure and education.
He gave the commendation at a capacity building programme for Business Membership Organisations (BMOs) held in Benin City, Edo State, with the theme, “Unlocking Business Membership Organisations (BMOs) growth to drive global competitiveness.”
Dikko, represented by Friday Okpara, director, Policy, Partnership and Coordination, SMEDAN, said similar capacity building programmes for BMOs were held in Imo and Kano states in 2017, noting that Edo State was chosen for the 2019 programme due to its strategic position as the gateway to the South-South and South-East zones of Nigeria.
He added that the choice of the state was also informed by the Obaseki-led administration’s disposition and resolve to frugally apply the state’s resources to critical sectors such as infrastructure and education which put the state on the path of prosperity and sustainable development.
“Your Excellency, your economic development plan of opening up investment opportunities with priority given to initiatives that promote the state’s competitive advantage in agriculture and human capital development is commendable. Your dedication has triggered a renewed drive to create cities with modern facilities, industrial hubs and business clusters that will strengthen the MSMEs towards global competitiveness,” the Director-General said.
Dikko said, “The vision being concretised under your administration is to reposition the state as the nucleus of micro, small and medium enterprises in Nigeria.”
He said Nigeria must work to ensure standardisation of its products in order to benefit more from the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement and to meet global competitiveness.
In his remarks, Governor Obaseki, stressed the need to diversify the economy by putting the appropriate policies in place and collaborating with the private sector.
The governor, who was represented by the permanent secretary, Ministry for Wealth Creation, Cooperatives and Employment, Joe Edionwe, said the state had put measures in place to reinvigorate the economy.
