The Bank of Industry (BoI), has said that over 8,000 Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises in Ekiti State have so far benefitted from the Federal Government’s ‘Marketmoni’ empowerment scheme.
The bank also put the number of beneficiaries of ‘Tradermoni’ in the State at over 20,000.
Both schemes are the two components of the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) that are geared towards provision of access to finance to enable small business holders grow their businesses.
While the GEEP is domiciled in the office of the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, and is supervised by him, the Bank of Industry implements it across the 36 states of the country, including the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
Speaking on the sidelines of the MSMEs clinic in Ado Ekiti recently, BoI’s Executive Director, Micro Enterprise, Mrs. Toyin Adeniji, said that the scheme had helped to boost commercial activities in the State.
Giving a breakdown of the beneficiaries of both empowerment schemes in the State, she said while over 8,000 MSMEs had benefitted from ‘MarketMoni’, over 20,000 petty traders had captured by ‘Trademoni’
She said, “In terms number, we have reached over 8,000 MSMEs in Ekiti state. If you want to go further down to the micro level, the petty traders, we have reached over 20,000 and we are still doing more. Our target is to reach up-to 30,000 in every state.
Making clarification on the two schemes, Mrs. Adeniji added that while ‘Marketmoni entitled market women who meet the criteria for a loan facility of N50, 000 in the first instance, beneficiaries of ‘Tradermoni’ who must either be trader, artisan, small holder farmer or a youth engaging in commercial activities, are entitled to a loan of N10, 000 on incremental basis.
She also shed some lights on the qualification criteria, saying, “To benefit from Marketmoni, you must either be a trader, artisan, a small holder farmer or youth in some commercial activities. And to qualify, you must belong to a trade association.
“In addition to that, any intending beneficiary must have a bank identification number, PVC. You must also get endorsement from your association. Once you satisfy all of these criteria, we will then process it in our system and the loan will be paid into the bank account given.”
“Similarly ‘Tradermoni’, which is the ultra-micro loan of N10, 000 for petty traders, is easier to qualify for. You are only expected to be captured by our agents at your point of trade. You must be seen to be selling something in the market; you must create a need for the money.
“Payments are made through a mobile wallet. After six months or more, you can pay back the 10,000 loan and this will qualify you for a higher one, which is N15, 000. It is an incremental loan. You can also graduate from ‘Tradermoni to ‘Marketmoni’. It is a progressive loan”, she explained.
