The Cross River State government, under the leadership of Governor Senator Bassey Otu, has committed N1 billion in a matching fund partnership with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) to support the development of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the state.
Governor Otu made this commitment during a meeting in Abuja with a delegation from SMEDAN, led by the agency’s Director General and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Charles Odii. He emphasized his administration’s dedication to fostering the growth of both new and existing MSMEs in Cross River State by offering enterprise training, capacity building, business development support at the Cross River State Entrepreneurship Development Centre (CRSEDC), and facilitating access to affordable finance, alongside monitoring and evaluation.
Governor Otu also announced that the Cross River State Microfinance and Enterprise Development Agency (MEDA) would serve as the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to implement this initiative on behalf of the state government.
In his remarks, SMEDAN’s Director General, Charles Odii, highlighted that this collaboration aims to pool resources and enhance entrepreneurial development services by linking training with financial support, ultimately driving the growth of Nano, Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises in Cross River State.
The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) saw participation from key officials, including Mr. Great Ogban Usetu, Director General of Cross River State Microfinance and Enterprise Development Agency, who signed on behalf of the state. SMEDAN’s CEO Charles Odii, along with the agency’s legal officer Mr. Yusuf Salman, co-signed the agreement on behalf of the federal agency.
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