The Oyo State Government has pledged its support to ACCION Microfinance Bank on the bank’s plan to grow Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) through its empowerment scheme in the state.
The State Commissioner for Finance, Mrs Abimbola Adekambi, made the promise at the official opening of the bank’s first branch in Dugbe, Ibadan, on Saturday.
Adekambi, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Mr Dapo Olatunde, said that the presence of the bank would improve the standard of living of people in the state.
She said that the state government would develop tax-friendly policies to enable the bank and other investors to hit their targets in the state.
The commissioner said that it was in the plan of Gov. Abiola Ajimobi to develop SMEs in the state by attracting micro finance banks’ investors.
“This was the reason why he provided a conducive environment and developed infrastructure to attract investors to the state,’’ Adekambi said.
She said that the bank’s target was to empower 50,000 SMEs in the state before the year ends.
In her remarks, the bank’s Managing Director, Mrs Olubunmi Lawson, said that the bank had empowered over 100 SME’s through its branches in Lagos, Ogun and Anambra.
She said that before the end of 2016, the bank would establish additional branches in Molete, Bodija and Agbowo communities to enable it hit its target in the state.
Lawson said that the bank has 35 branches in Lagos and hope to open more branches in Rivers and Cross River by 2017.
She said that with the bank’s track records, it could boldly say “we are successful, ACCION is here to assist entrepreneurs in the state to succeed too by sustaining and expanding businesses’’.
Lawson said that bank had consistently grown its clients base from 2,531 customers in 2007 to about 250,000 in 2016 and disbursed N53 billion.
“We are aware that the conventional banks typically ignore micro- entrepreneurs when they asked for loans.
“So, what we do is to develop products tailored at micro entrepreneurs’ satisfaction,’’ she said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the bank was established in 2007 and granted national licence in 2015 to increase its presence all over the country.