3m MSMEs were lost to COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria

Close to Three million  Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) were lost to the disruptions of COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria, Promoter and Director of MINCE International Concept, Barrister Kola Awe has disclosed.

He made the disclosure at a town hall meeting held in Lagos for beauty products and cosmetics manufacturers organised by MINCE in collaboration with Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC).

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According to Awe, Nigeria has over 50m MSME but less than 2per cent constitute the medium and large industry. The estimated 98per cent, he said, constitutes the major bedrock of revenue generation, employment and contributed over 48per cent to the GDP in the last five years; over 50per cent of industrial jobs and  90per cent of the manufacturing sector.

In his presentation titled, MSME: The Road to Export, Awe pointed out that in spite of the contributions of MSME; they are the most setback group bedevilled with a myriad of challenges and obstacles ranging from multiple taxations, huge non-tariff barriers, limited/lack of access to finance, bureaucracies, weak logistics infrastructure, high infrastructural deficiency, weak currency, access to market and high cost of production among others.

He, therefore, stated that the Mince strategy seeks to eliminate all the middlemen, local buying agents and marketers in the value chain of the raw materials as it will relate directly with the processors by providing the raw materials; thereby further eliminating third party traders.

This according to him will enable the smallest micro company to have its raw materials at the best price in spite of the quantity as the model will be replicated for all imported raw materials and packaging materials in the cosmetics industry.