Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday harped on the need to take a another look at how Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are regulated in the country in order to improve the business environment for such in Nigeria.
Osinbajo the call at the commissioning of the Abuja Chamber of Commerce Trade and Convention Centre.
According to him, however, the federal government is doing its best to improve on the existing business environment.
“With respect to government policy, of course, you are aware that the government’s position is that we must continue, on an incremental basis, to provide for ourselves, a properly enabling business environment in every respect which is why we have Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) which focuses on trying to improve on the business environment.
“But I think that one of the drawbacks that we have had in improving the business environment is really with respect to how we regulate small businesses,” the vice president posited.
He said further: “for example in Abuja, I hear very frequently, small businesses who talk about the kind of problems that they experience, either with fumigation licenses, or one license or the other. All manner of constraints, which ideally should not occur.
“I know that the Minister of the FCT is actively working with the PEBEC and the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, have all been concerned about making this work.
“But Abuja is just one example of how generally speaking, all over the country, we need to take a second look at how we regulate small businesses; we just need to take a second look.”
Speaking on the impact the administration’s pro-business finance initiatives, Osinbajo noted “as part of government policy, we have already more or less removed some of the major taxes. For Corporation taxes, if your turnover is under N25 million, your tax is zero. And we have reduced incrementally all the way up. So, with respect to Corporation taxes, at least, we know that we are doing quite well.
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“If you look at the proposed Finance Act, there are several incentives for small businesses and I think this is where the private sector must work very actively with us in ensuring that we are self-regulators and policemen and women of the regulations.
“I think the time has come for us to have a chamber of commerce paying very active attention to all that is going on in the MSMEs space especially with respect to regulation.
“As a matter of fact, I think that we are all generally, in agreement that there are at least three trends that will determine our economic development. The first, of course, is government policy, the second is private sector investment, and the third is that part of the private sector which is the SMEs sector. I think that those three will definitely determine the way that our economic development trajectory proceeds in this country,” the vice president stated.
Earlier in his remark, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Niyi Adebayo assured the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) of his ministry’s support in growing businesses in Nigeria.
On his part, President of ACCI, Prince Adetokunbo Kayode said the Convention Centre will serve as a place for the promotion of Nigerian businesses and the empowerment of the youths.
