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Group to disburse N10 million grant to rural businesses

By Gloria Ehiaghe
11 September 2018   |   2:22 am
The grant, which is a minimum of N3 million and maximum of N10 million is funded by the Social Exchange Market for each project enlisted in that community, town or city under a group established within a community.At a seminar organised by Visioned skills recently, the Chief Executive Officer, Emeka Kama....

Plans are underway by Visioned Skills Development Centre, to disburse N10 million social exchange market grants to communities to kick-start small-scale businesses.

The grant, which is a minimum of N3 million and maximum of N10 million is funded by the Social Exchange Market for each project enlisted in that community, town or city under a group established within a community.At a seminar organised by Visioned skills recently, the Chief Executive Officer, Emeka Kama, who said no collateral is required, however, said to access the grant, an applicant must have production-oriented, business ideas and how to process and package the idea, with documentation attached.

According to him, the NGO is out to empower small scale businesses or ideas, among those approved by the Social Exchange Market (SEM), an international body with representative office in Abuja, to link the grassroots to the body to access the grant.He explained that the grant, is neither to be paid back nor a loan, but an empowerment grant targeted at Nigerians, who are already in business and want to expand or those with great ideas to establish new businesses.

He said SEM is ready to give enough funds, if Nigerians can come together and embrace its programme for a long term.He explained: “The NGO will generate model micro-finance banks at the grassroots that will become a financial institution. Social Exchange Market releases a Model microfinance bank grant for each project enlisted in that community, town or city under the group.

“This is how it is: If we are having 10,000 microfinance banks (MfBs). In each batch, each of these MfBs will be given N10 billion, multiply that with the 10,000 MfBs. Now if each batch is 1,000, multiply 10,000 MfBs with 1,000, you will see the population of the first batch.

“In my own first batch banks, I have 27 banks, which means that I have 27,000 members for the first batch. In my second batch, we have gotten like over 170 banks, which is over 170,000 beneficiaries preparing for the second batch. But the first batch is our focus now. In the first batch, we have 27,000. In each of these banks that made up the 27,000, the banks owe 1,000 beneficiaries. These 1,000 beneficiaries, the total sum of money that will be given to that bank is N10 billion. That means N10 billion multiplied by 27,000 banks. That is what Visioned Skills will give to the banks, who will give it to the beneficiaries.”

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