Nigeria’s Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima, has said the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration has already taken bold steps to construct digital highways and bridges that would take Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) across borders into the heart of the African market.
Senator Shettima stated this in Abuja on Monday while inaugurating the oversight committee recently approved by President Tinubu to organise Nigeria’s hosting of the 4th African Union (AU) Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Forum, scheduled to hold between June 23 and 27 in Abuja.
This is according to a statement by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Communications(Office of the Vice President) on 12th May, 2025.
Nairametrics previously reported that President Tinubu had approved the composition of an Oversight Committee to organize Nigeria’s hosting of 6,000 SMEs at the 4th African Union Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Forum, scheduled to take place from June 23 to 27 in Abuja.
Africa not short of ideas
Speaking at the inauguration, Shettima stressed that while over 83 per cent of employment in Africa lies in the informal economy, the continent is not short on ideas and digital innovation that offer an unprecedented window to compete with the rest of the world.
- Listing some of the administration’s policies and programmes in this direction, the Vice President recalled that Nigeria has aligned its investment, digital trade, and competition policies with the agreement, having chaired and spearheaded the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Negotiating Forum.
“He noted that it is for this reason that Nigeria also established a Technology Export and Digital Trade Desk to support the nation’s entrepreneurs in exporting services and digital goods across Africa.
“This, VP Shettima said, the i-DICE Programme, a 617.7 million dollar investment in digital and creative enterprises, and the 3 Million Tech Talent Programme, is set out to achieve by training Nigerian youths in coding, data science, and digital fluency to power the nation’s transformation, “the statement partly reads.
- The VP assured that President Tinubu’s government is ready to lead in shaping Africa’s digital trade future, even as the nation is harmonising its laws to make cross-border commerce seamless, secure, and scalable.
“We have reformed. We have invested. And we are resolved to see this transformation through. But none of us can achieve this in isolation. That is why this forum is not just important. It is indispensable. It provides the blueprint, the platform, and the partnerships that will empower African MSMEs to become the heartbeat of our economic renewal,” he said.
More insights
Earlier, the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President (Office of the Vice President), Sen. Ibrahim Hadejia, who is chairman of the organising committee, said the forum will provide a veritable platform for exchanging knowledge and ideas on MSME development and facilitate collaboration across Africa.
- He added that the Forum aligns with the efforts of the Tinubu administration in supporting development and growth in the sector.
- On his part, the Special Adviser to the President on Job Creation and MSME, Mr Temitola Adekunle-Johnson, who is secretary of the committee, assured that the team would work collaboratively to deliver a world-class event that reflects the efforts of the Tinubu administration.
- Members of the committee include the Managing Director of the Bank of Industry, Dr Olasupo Olusi; the Executive Chairman of Federal Inland Revenue Service, Mr Zacch Adedeji and the Director General of Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Mr Charles Odii.
What you should know
In a video statement, Mr. Temitola Adekunle-Johnson emphasized, “We have SMEs—close to 6,000—from all African countries, plus 145 different partners from all over the world coming to Nigeria to explore ways to support SMEs in the country and across the continent.”
He added that SMEs from across Nigeria will have the opportunity to engage with their counterparts from other African nations.
“It will allow them to unlock potential and discover new opportunities both within Nigeria, across Africa, and globally,” he said.
The five-day event will conclude with the National SME Awards.
