Sokoto state said it will establish three microfinance banks as well as small and medium enterprises development agency as part of its commitment to enhance funding and stimulate the latent entrepreneurial capacity of the people at the grassroot level.
Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal who stated this on Tuesday when he received members of the Small and Medium Scale Rice Millers Association in Sokoto Tuesday, said that already, the SOSMEDA bill has been presented to the state House of Assembly for passage into law.
He also gave the names of the three microfinance banks as Giginya, Fodiyo and Gudale.
According to him, the role of small scale enterprises in changing the fortune of a given society cannot be over-emphasized. He said of recent, there has been decisive shift of emphasis from the ‘lavish capital intensive, large scale industrial projects to small and medium scale industries’ because of their enormous potentials for rapid and sustainable development.
“Apart from their potential for ensuring a self-reliant industrialization, in terms of ability to rely largely on local raw materials, small scale enterprises are also in a better placed to boost employment, guarantee a more even distribution of development in the state, especially the rural areas,” he added.
The Governor said it became imperative for the government to set up the banks and SOSMEDA because of the shortage of competent managerial skills due inability of owners to employ the services of experts among small and medium scale enterprises in the state.
Similarly, he said they are hampered by their inability to access funds and new technology leading to reliance on obsolete method of production.
Tambuwal also lamented the inability of those agencies in Sokoto to cope with increased competition in the industry due to lack of capacity and high cost of raw materials which affect their productivity and profitability.
While expressing confidence that the measures put in place will stimulate economic activities in the state, Tambuwal said the new measures will reduce hardship and help government to achieve macro-economic objectives which include employment creation, mobilization of local resources, easing rural urban drift and poverty reduction.
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