Chairman/CEO, Express Group of Companies, Adeyemi Adebanjo, has said that Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) should be the focus of the Federal Government in the post COVID-19 economy.
He said this is necessary if the nation’s economy will bounce back through strategic interventions, which will assist the growth of small businesses.
Adebanjo advised the Federal Government to set aside substantial fund to provide soft loans to various business concerns at the lower cadre across various sectors of the economy to grow their businesses in view of the devastating effect of COVID- 19 on the global economy.
Speaking at the opening of a new hospitality facility, PACE Express Event Place, in Mosan-Okunola LCDA in Lagos State, Adebanjo stated that as most businesses had been collapsing due to effects of COVID-19 lockdown, government’s strategic social intervention through its various financial institutions in virtually all sectors of the economy would go a long way to assist in reviving dying businesses and provide more jobs.
According to Adebanjo, also CEO, Express Dry Cleaning limited, Megor Nigeria Limited and Express Logistics Limited, such low interest rate loans could be made available either with or without collateral to lower cadre of business concerns such as artisans, cottage industries operators, agro-allied and other skilled workers across various sectors who could create new jobs or re-finance existing ones to boost the economy.
While crediting the government on its various social intervention programmes to create jobs, Adebanjo blamed youth unemployment on lazy attitude and lack of focus by Nigerian youths, saying government had always been doing much to promote youth employment and engagement through various interventions, which he said, most youths abused overtime or completely ignored.
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Adebanjo observed that most Nigerian youths usually prefer to go the easy way by ignoring available opportunities to grow businesses, but would instead embrace odd vocational jobs like okada riding, internet-fraud and other social vices to make quick and easy money.
He stressed that if the nation’s youths could stay focused and take good advantage of government’s various social intervention programmes to invest their talents and energy on growing small businesses through government available support, the nation would witness massive and rapid economic development through the SME’s.
Adebanjo, who also emphasised that human management was key in growing businesses, also advocated private sector intervention through Public Private Participation (PPP) to support infrastructural development for economic growth, while adding that government alone should not be left to be the sole promoter of national economy.
He said the secret of his success in business had been his ability to manage human resources, stressing that technology would never take the place of human management in growing businesses.
He appealed to the Lagos State government to consider the re-opening of social facilities such as hotels and event centers to boost the state economy.
