London Stock Exchange Launches Opportunity Platform For Nigeria SME’s
The London Stock Exchange (LSE) with the support of the UK government has launched a fresh initiative that will inspire significant growth among Nigeria’s Small and Medium Enterprises, SME’s.
To realise this noble objective, the LSE is collaborating with the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, to create an enabling environment that will promote stakeholder collaboration and communication in Africa.
At the launch of London Stock Exchange Group’s “Companies to Inspire Africa” Report in Lagos, Andrew Davidson, Deputy Head of Mission, UK High Commission in Lagos, declared his home government’s tacit support to grow the SME community in Africa, saying that data has shown that small businesses have proven to be the catalyst for any country’s growth. Davidson observed though that risk of doing business in Africa is high, however, growth opportunities are significant.
He said, “If you want to run a successful business you must think and be creative”. The envoy shared the belief that working in partnership with African Exchanges, the LSE is developing robust, efficient and transparent capital markets to raise finance for companies like the ones listed in the launched report.
He said the platform will help unleash the potential of equity capital to support the SME’s that are so vital to the future of the African economies.
Speaking at a panel discussion at the event, chief executive officer, Diamond Bank Plc, Uzoma Dozie, noted that globally every nation has attempted to deal with the issue of poverty and unemployment by leveraging the catalytic importance of SME’s.
Dozie, said that in Nigeria, the contribution of SME’s to the economy is huge and significant, adding that around 10 per cent of total manufacturing output and 70 per cent of industrial employment is generated by SME’s.
“These businesses are essential components of the manufacturing sector that forms the link between the extraction industry and the services sector and are therefore pivotal in the wealth creation process of such economies. They are vital tools in achieving sustainable economic development, especially in emerging markets and developing economies such as Nigeria and West Africa sub-region at large” he stated.
Dozie, added that while a lot has been done across the continent to enhance the robustness of the SME sector, a lot more needs to be done, particularly in areas such as power and access to capital. “There is urgent need for African countries to come up with a clear roadmap for building a robust SME sector that permeates the entire country” he noted.
