The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) attributes the rise in employment in Nigeria in 2020 to various intervention programs initiated by the Federal Government.
Dr. Dikko Radda, the Director-General of SMEDAN, highlighted the significant contributions of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to employment growth, noting noticeable improvements in their performance.
SMEDAN, in collaboration with the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), released a report on the 2020 national survey of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
The report revealed a 3.7% increase in employment by MSMEs in 2020 compared to 2017, with 61,954,73 individuals employed.
Dr. Radda emphasized that the increase in employment can be attributed to various government interventions, including COVID-19 loans, loans from NIRSAL Microfinance Bank, the National Sustainability Economic Plan, and MSME grants.
However, Dr. Simon Harry, the Statistician-General of the Federation, noted a decrease in the number of MSMEs and their contributions to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) due to the adverse effects of COVID-19.
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The pandemic led to the temporary closure of 53.2% of SMEs and 37.3% of medium enterprises, resulting in a reduction in the overall contribution of MSMEs to GDP by 3.5% in 2020 compared to 2017.
Despite the challenges, MSMEs in Nigeria remain significant contributors to the economy. As of December 31, 2020, there were 1,240,965 MSMEs, representing 96.7% of all businesses in the country.
MSMEs accounted for 87.9% of employment generation and contributed 46.31% to the nation’s GDP. Additionally, MSMEs accounted for 6.21% of gross exports within the Nigerian economy.
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