The Federal Government of Nigeria has announced the take-off of the disbursement of funds under its Presidential Palliative Programme aimed at cushioning the effect of the fuel subsidy removal.
The programmes, namely: Presidential Conditional Grant Programme and Presidential Palliative Loan Programme will be in form of loans and grants.
A statement issued by the office of the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Doris Uzoka-Anite, confirmed the programmes are part of present administration’s efforts to cushion the effect of subsidy removal.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, had in his palliative plans released in July, promised to release N125 billion in funding for Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises (MSMEs).
Under the Presidential Conditional Grant Programme, a sum of N50,000 will be disbursed to nano businesses across the 774 local government areas in the country.
According to the minister, under the Presidential Palliative Loan Programme, the sum of ₦150 billion would be shared among different businesses.
A breakdown of the amount showed micro, micro, small and medium-sized enterprises across various sectors would receive the sum of ₦75 billion, while manufacturers would receive ₦75 billion. The loan would be administered to the beneficiaries at a single-digit interest rate of nine per annum.
For the Presidential Conditional Grant Programme, nano businesses across the 774 local government councils would benefit ₦50,000 each as grants from the FG. The statement further stated that MSMEs were eligible to access loan facilities up to ₦1 million with a repayment span of three years while manufacturers were eligible to get up to ₦1 billion to access financing for working capital with a repayment period of one year for working capital or five years for the purchase of machinery and equipment.
“The Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria will collaborate with state and local governments, federal legislators, federal ministers, banks and other stakeholders. Eligible nano business beneficiaries should be willing to provide proof of residential/business address in their local government area, and provide relevant personal and bank account information, including Bank Verification Number for identity verification”, the statement added.