NICA Bemoans Inadequate Financial Support For SMEs

National Institute of Credit Administration (NICA) chartered has expressed concern over the inadequate support that Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) receive from multinational corporations, financial institutions, and other key stakeholders in the Nigerian economy.

Despite their critical role in driving economic growth, job creation, and national development, MSMEs continue to struggle with limited access to credit, unfavourable lending conditions, and insufficient financial backing from major players in the business and financial sectors.

As Nigeria transitions towards a more credit-driven economy, the registrar of the institute, Prof. Chris Onalo said, the survival and expansion of MSMEs are increasingly dependent on the willingness of the government, financial institutions, and big corporate entities to create an enabling environment.

“Banks’ long-standing reluctance to offer flexible loan options and stringent collateral requirements and multinational corporations and other big business conglomerates’ general apathy toward integrating MSMEs into their value chains have significantly stifled small businesses’ growth potential in Nigeria,” he noted.

On lack of patronage, Onalo said, “beyond credit access, financial institutions, multinational corporations, and other large conglomerates also fail to support MSMEs by patronising their businesses.

“Rather than engaging MSMEs for procurement and service contracts, they prefer dealing with large corporations or those owned by insiders in top management positions and this practice deprives MSMEs of essential business opportunities and stifles competition in the economy. The federal government is advised to put legislation in place to check this trend.”