Addressing SMEs top 5 challenges

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMES) face myriads of challenges while trying to do their businesses in Nigeria. Some of them spoke about some of the challenges.

Lack of social amenities/infrastructure
“If you are doing business in Nigeria, you must think of how to get your water supply, shop and electricity. There is no infrastructure on ground. Even when there is, it’s not dependable. If you want your business to thrive, you must get your own generator, water supply and other logistics,” Favour John David, entrepreneur

Inadequate electricity supply
“For me, the major challenge I face in operating my business is lack of electricity supply. Most times there is no light. So, I have to use the generator. Now, to get fuel for the generator is also a problem. So, as a hair dresser, light is very important for our job and yet there is inadequate power supply,” Loveth Agbo, owner, Hair Dressing Salon.

Lack of water supply
“I own a fish farm and water supply is my major challenge. Fish farming requires a lot of water. You have to change water when it is due. But because there is no water supply where I live, I have to keep buying water from water tankers/vendors. So, this increases the cost of production,” Muhammed Shuaibu, fish farmer.

Bad road network
“I am a farmer in one of the remote villages. Getting my farm produce to the city is my challenge. We do not have access road to the city centre. During the rainy season the road gets worse. So, how do I bring my products to the city. Even when I charter a vehicle, they complain of  potholes so I end up selling my produce at  giveaway prices near my village. It’s so unfortunate that after suffering to farm, we cannot make profit,” Danjuma Umar, farmer.

Access to funds
“Every kind of business needs funds to thrive. As a small-scale business owner, if you go to the bank, they will ask what your capital base is and collateral, if you can’t come up with collateral, they will not give you loan. So, many SMEs don’t have access to finances. Most times capital is a major  problem,” Fatima Ramlan, Make-up artist.

Multiple taxation
“Multiple taxation is also an issue. The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Federal Capital Territory Authority and Abuja  Municipal Area Council (AMAC) come to collect tax from us. There are multiple agencies that come here to collect tax. A couple of days ago, some people came here saying that they want 20,000. I told them that the money we are generating here is not much. Last month we generated N95,140 in this business centre and our expenses was N41,700 apart from payment of salaries. So, multiple taxation is another challenge we face as business owners.” Valentine Ogwashi, Manager Cyber café.