Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN), the foremost wholesale Development Finance Institution (DFI) providing sustainable financing to Micro, Small, Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)has further shown its commitment to the needs of the sector by driving the call for MSMEs funding through the maiden edition of its Lecture Series scheduled to take place at the Congress Hall, Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja on July 29 2019.
The lecture series is a thought leadership initiative of Development Bank of Nigeria, which provides a platform for a robust exchange of ideas to meet the challenges and opportunities that exist in the MSME segment of the economy.
According to the Managing Director, DBN, Mr Tony Okpanachi, the lecture series is one of the ways to further strengthen the economy by ensuring that MSMEs are adequately empowered to continually contribute effectively to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the nation.
In his words, “MSMEs in any clime is the backbone for inclusive economic growth. In advanced economies, small businesses have been seen to be the driving force in achieving growth in all sectors of the economy they operate.”
He noted that the central objective is to broaden the understanding of the challenges and critically examine practical steps to resolve some of the obstacles that constrain growth within the segment.
Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) is a wholesale bank that was conceived by the Federal Government of Nigeria in collaboration with global development partners to address the major financing challenges facing Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria. The bank lends to Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs) Microfinance banks, Commercial banks, existing retail DFIs and leasing companies who in turn lend to MSMEs.
DBN’s objective is to alleviate financing constraints faced by MSMEs in Nigeria through the provision of financing and partial credit guarantees to eligible financial intermediaries on a market-conforming and fully financially sustainable basis.
It is expected that people from the various financial institutions, Policy Makers, Regulators, and operators in the MSME segment would attend the lecture.
