Peter Mbah SME financing call pushes for fair funding beyond banks to strengthen South East industries and boost regional competition

Peter Mbah SME financing reform has become a pressing call from the Enugu State Governor, who urged the creation of dedicated funding schemes for Small and Medium Enterprises independent of commercial banks.

Also read: Emmanuel Egbosimba Faces Trial for Defiling Daughter

Mbah said this would ensure fair competition and economic balance across the South East and the wider ECOWAS region.

Speaking at a workshop on the Economic Community of West African States Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS) in Enugu on Tuesday, the governor stressed that financial institutions must play a more active role in supporting local manufacturers facing severe funding challenges.

“We should set up a framework to assist local industries. We need to protect local manufacturing,” Mbah, represented by his deputy, Mr Ifeanyi Ossai, said.

He appealed to the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs and relevant financial bodies to create mechanisms that would empower small businesses rather than hinder them.

The governor added that commercial banks must be compelled to help businesses in the South East grow, saying regional entrepreneurs deserve equal opportunities to compete with counterparts in other ECOWAS subregions.

“We must work to restructure our financial systems so that we can compete effectively. The South East is renowned for its enterprise and innovation, and supporting our SMEs means empowering our people,” he added.

Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, also addressed the workshop, describing the ETLS initiative as a timely tool for deepening regional integration and expanding trade within West Africa.

“This initiative speaks directly to the urgent task of strengthening regional trade and empowering our Small and Medium Enterprises,” she said, calling SMEs the “engine room” of Nigeria’s economy.

President of the Enugu Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, Mr Odega Jideonwo, described the workshop as “a step in the right direction”, noting that many locally made goods still struggle to reach wider African markets.

Recent data by Moniepoint Microfinance Bank revealed that 42 per cent of Nigerian small businesses cannot survive for a month without income — a figure that underscores the fragility of the sector Mbah seeks to reform.

Also read: General Hydrocarbons Limited Loses Arbitration to First Bank

With his Peter Mbah SME financing proposal, the governor has once again placed the region’s business resilience at the forefront of Nigeria’s economic recovery discourse.