Duro Kuteyi, the National President, Association of Food and Agro Processors (AFAP), has appealed to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to assist Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to easily access foreign exchange for procurement of machinery.
According to a news report by NAN, he made this appeal while speaking at the Award and End-of-Year ceremony of Spectra Industries Ltd. in Lagos on Thursday.
While speaking at the ceremony, Kuteyi noted that having access to machines will enable SMEs to play an active role in the economy, which will help to deepen economic growth, and go a long way to improve the country’s foreign exchange earnings, job creation, and productivity.
By Oluwafunke Ishola
Lagos, Dec. 24, 2020 The Association of Food and Agro Processors (AFAP) has appealed to Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to assist Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to easily access foreign exchange for procurement of machinery.
AFAP National President, Duro Kuteyi, made the appeal on the sidelines of the Award and End-of-Year ceremony Spectra Industries Ltd. in Lagos on Thursday.
Kuteyi, who is also Chief Executive Officer of Spectra Industries Ltd., noted that some members of the association had secured funding under CBN’s financial intervention.
He said that the challenge was in converting the funds to dollars at the CBN official exchange rate to import the machines.
AFAP National President,
Duro Kuteyi, made the appeal on the sidelines of the Award and End-of-Year ceremony Spectra Industries Ltd. in Lagos on Thursday.
Kuteyi, who is also Chief Executive Officer of Spectra Industries Ltd., noted that some members of the association had secured funding under CBN’s financial intervention.
He said that the challenge was in converting the funds to dollars at the CBN official exchange rate to import the machines.
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Most machines required for production are not available in Nigeria, and purchasing foreign exchange at the black market rate to buy the machines will be too costly.
“We know that many SMEs can export quality goods to other countries, particularly African countries, if we have durable and functional equipment to aid our production,” he said.