The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has appointed Jaiz Bank PLC to manage a financing scheme aimed at expanding access to affordable funding for 6,122 entrepreneurs who completed training under the inspire, create, start and scale (ICSS) initiative.
The announcement was made on Tuesday during the launch of the Grow Fund scheme, designed to support micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) with affordable financing for their businesses.
At the official unveiling of the GROW Fund scheme for ICSS trainees in Abuja, the Director General of SMEDAN, Charles Odii, said the programme marks a major shift from routine training to a more structured support system that directly connects capacity building with single-digit interest loans and asset financing.
He explained that many small businesses across the country have benefited from different capacity development programmes but still struggle to access funding.
“Everywhere you go, you see small businesses. Many of them have received training through several capacity development initiatives.
“To ensure that training meets capital, SMEDAN took the ICSS scheme to find solutions to the complaint by the banks that they have money, but our trainees have not been equipped enough to unlock the funding,” Odii said.
He added that other partners supporting the scheme include the German Cooperation through GIZ, Kaduna Business School, and GOPA worldwide consultants.
The representative of the Embassy of Germany in Abuja, who also serves as the First Secretary and Head of Cooperation, Dr Karin Jansen, commended SMEDAN for its leadership in developing and implementing the ICSS programme across Lagos, Edo, Ogunye, Niger, Plateau States and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
Jansen described the initiative as a modular entrepreneurship pathway tailored to meet the needs of small businesses at different stages of development, from inspiration and business creation to sustainable growth and scaling.
The Chief Executive Officer of Jaiz Bank Plc, Dr Haruna Musa, described the scheme as a catalyst for innovation, job creation and sustainable economic development.
Represented at the event by the General Manager of the bank, Idris Ahmed, Musa said the fund goes beyond financial support and reflects a renewed commitment by the bank and its partners to empower entrepreneurs and promote inclusive growth.
“At Jaiz Bank, we firmly believe that sustainable economic growth must be inclusive. Empowering small businesses remains central to our non-interest banking model,” he said.
