By PROVIDENCE OBUH

Okeleme Frederick is the National Secretary of the Association of Micro Entrepreneurs of Nigeria, (AMEN). In this interview with Financial Vanguard, he highlights some of the challenges faced by Micro  entrepreneurs. He lamented the unfriendly policies of the Lagos State Government and the Association’s contribution to economic growth. He noted that the N200 billion MSMEs development fund (Credit Guarantee Scheme) may not get to the real sector. excerpts:

What is AMEN all about?

Association of Micro Entrepreneurs of Nigeria (AMEN) is an association of small producers, established to promote the growth of members’ businesses and to contribute to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country. This is done through the technique of combining lower cost of production with competition through invention and innovation using our local raw materials for production of quality products that meet international standards.

How has the MSMEs benefited from microfinance banks in terms of micro lending, or what impact have they made to the association so far?

The truth is that MFBs in Nigeria are not doing the right thing they were set up for. Fraud is their name. We advise our members to go for commercial banks if they have the requirement for borrowing to finance their businesses.

Also, MFB has failed and performed below average in the following areas: (1) High interest rate. (2) The managements are deceitful and operate their businesses with lies. (3) Bank charges have sky- rocketed. (4) They don’t keep agreements. (5) Some of their staff are dubious etc. They have not contributed anything, rather they have been feeding big on micro entrepreneurs who are desperate to collect loan.

You sound angry, unhappy, tell us more.

I am not angry and I don’t have any grudge against the MFBs in Nigeria. But I am angry at the exploitation of young Nigerian entrepreneurs who are desperate to borrow money to finance their businesses at all cost.

Can you tell us how much interest MFBs charge and how it affects your association?

They charge between five per cent and 10 per cent per month, hidden charges not included.

Concerning your claims, just give details of your experience with the MFBs and how they have defrauded you.

I knew one of the MFBs who gave out Keke NAPEP to a cooperative and how one of the staff defrauded the cooperative in the name of processing papers which is one of the conditions these banks gave them.

Were you not in the country when the Central Bank of Nigeria withdrew operating licences of many of them, even the most viable ones? As a result of fraudulent activities, one of my members lost N300, 000.

I have not approached them for loan but I went to different MFBs in the country, about 20 of them on fact-finding mission and I can authoritatively tell you that their activities and mode of operation are the same. My sister, I will advise you to do investigative journalism on the activities and operations of MFBs in Nigeria.

So what exactly are the challenges of the association?

Our challenges have been finance, the Bank of Industry is not helping, Commercial banks require billions of naira worth of collateral, work space provided already by SMEDAN are graveyards, no amenities. Government regulations especially in Lagos, are killing businesses. Example is the activities of KAI Brigade, Tax officials, LASTMA, high cost of branding and transportation to mention a few.

The Federal Government has approved N2 billion MSME development funds, which they will start disbursing soon. BOI too has been giving funds to MSMEs. What happened that AMEN members have not accessed the funds, or are their loan requirements beyond their reach?

My President had addressed the issue in Daily Sun publication requesting the BOI to come out and tell Nigerians how many micro producers have benefited from the fund.

We wrote to BOI, requesting to have a meeting with them, the acknowledgement duly stamped took three weeks but was not found in their system.

Concerning the N2 billion credit scheme, I bet you, that money will end up with few individuals who claim to be gods of industry in Nigeria.

What contributions have AMEN made to the economy?

We have put smiles on the faces of young entrepreneurs especially in area of NAFDAC registration and documentation, organising trade fairs and exhibitions through our meetings with various distributors within and outside Nigeria, organising trainings for them, provision of work space for members etc.

The association partners with over 28 government agencies and non-governmental organisations. Our contributions to the growth of MSMEs are numerous. We contributed immensely to the drafting of National Policy on MSMEs, in collaboration with SMEDAN.

Let me shock you, 80 per cent of micro manufacturing industries are owned by our members with their products duly registered by NAFDAC. In the area of agriculture, our members are doing well, some of them who cultivate maize, supply to members who are into food production, especially custard and corn meal.

In terms of employment generation, some of our members have up to 20-30 workers, while some employ up to five to 10 labourers. We have more than 180 members in Lagos who manufacture products and provide services.

What are some of the action plans you are putting in place?

By October, we will shock Nigerians with our One Million Man March in support of our vision.

We are happy the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) is keying into the vision and supporting us through provision of work space across the country.

On the One Million Man March, what is your target and what is the vision you talked about?

On the one Million Man March, by the grace of God we will shock Nigerians because we want to repeat in Nigeria what happened in the Asian countries. Our vision is “One Family, One Product & Service.” This means in every home, there must be a member of the family who owns one business either in manufacturing sector, agriculture, engineering, information technology, wood-making, or render services.

For instance, our youths and graduates are keying into the vision already, after graduation some of them come to our offices to start their own businesses.