E-Business
The Role of the Government in Supporting SMEs for Economic Growth

By Adewale A. Adeyipo
The Government at various levels has in one way or the other focused on the performance of SMEs for economic gains and growth. While some Government in developed economies like the US & China had formulated policies aimed at improving and empowering the growth and development of the SMEs.
In China, State Owned Enterprises (SOE) were transformed into small and medium Non-SOEs, which provided an opportunity for more SMEs to be established in China. This approach of Non-SOE promotion policy led to the development of more SMEs, which contributed to China’s economic growth.
They make up over 99% of all enterprises in China today, while the output value of SMEs accounts for at least 60% of the country’s GDP and generates more than 82% of employment opportunities in China. (According to China Statistical Yearbook).
However, other Government focus on assisting SMEs to grow through soft loans and other fiscal incentives to promote the socio-economic development of the country like poverty alleviation, youth unemployment, human capital development, and improve the social welfare of the people.
For example, in China, the World Bank offered support through enhancing access to finance for underserved micro and small enterprises with US$100 Million in IBRD financing, including both lending and technical assistance. Before the project began, about 20,000 micro and small loans were disbursed to MSME clients in 40 branches per year, but by the project’s completion at the end of 2010, more than 60,000 loans were issued in a year — tripling the supply of credit to small businesses. Over three years, US$2.3 billion in MSME loans were distributed through recipient Chinese financial institutions.
The Bigger Problem
Nigeria’s population, according to the UN, stands at approx. 200M with a median age of 18, which implies the Nigeria youth represents 42.54% of the total population. According to Trading Economics, the unemployment rate in the last 5 -10 years has continuously grown by 4% and was 23.1% as at the previous report generated in Q3 of 2018.
Also noteworthy is the fact that approx. 500,000 youths graduate yearly with 47% of these graduate’s unemployable (Jobberman Reports). The Government is consistently finding it challenging to match the skills of these graduates to the available jobs in the market which in turn puts more pressure on the nation’s dependency rate of 88.2% (Trading Economics).
One may suggest that to address this employability gap and high dependency rate is to engage our technical schools actively and also revisit the curriculum of our institutions. Many have argued on the suitability of the faculties responsible for transferring knowledge to the students in today’s VUCA world. Not so much about the technical understanding of it, but more on the practicality of the same knowledge outside the walls of the classrooms.
Sadly, the fact is that these institutions are not enough and ill-equipped. While the Government has only been able to establish 156 approved technical schools (NBTE Reports) across the 36 states with an average of 4 technical schools per state, these statistics show that the technical schools available can’t match the current population of Nigerian graduates (500,000/year).
How then can we engage unskilled laborers when providing jobs for graduates is still a major challenge? Can the Government establish more technical schools to accommodate the skilled and unskilled? (That’s a discussion for another day).
The World Bank has estimated annual growth of 2.6% of the Nigerian population, while the unemployment rate was recorded to be at 23.1% in Q4, 2018. Trading economics predicted that there will be a 4% YOY in unemployment in Nigeria. The math is simple; if all variables remain constant, the 4% YOY increase in 6 years would have resulted in an unemployment rate of 29.02%. This scenario would lead to an increase in crime rate, political instability, exploitation of labor, increase in poverty, and social problems.
However, one of the quickest solution to this futuristic problem of unemployment is to integrate SME skills program as a curriculum in our early years of schooling, build more technical schools to reduce dependency rate, improve on existing infrastructure (good road, rail network & power generation), encourage more public-private partnership policies, introduce policies that guides SMEs to excel.
The Nigerian Government through her many agencies like the NIPC, SMEDAN, and FIRS can enhance their engagements with the MSMEs, and also create central policies where SMEs are allowed to showcase their products/services and sell to the global market while ensuring adherence to the international standard.
It is quite important to note that the financial sector also plays a significant role in the sustainability of SMEs as they are a major player in providing loans to SMEs. Just as reported by Techpoint, Oyapay, a Fintech start-up company, shut down due to a case of a family investment gone wrong. This approach shows that Start-ups often depending on family members as a source for funding, isn’t a sustainable model.
Technological Innovation
In spite of globalization, an important section of developing countries’ SMEs operationalizes business the conventional way. This results in a low level of productivity, low-quality of products, and exploring to a small and local market. It is noted that generally, SMEs tend to have low productivity and as a result, are weak when competing.
This is the result of using conventional technology and not having the maximum utility of machinery. Due to the limitation of funding and innovation, it may not be possible for them to improve their processes. However, policies can be implemented to guide SMEs on adopting the use of technology.
Infrastructure (Road, Rail Network & Power)
Poor infrastructure is a major frustration for SMEs trying to get on with their jobs; be its poor-quality broadband; it is stopping a small business from operating more online or rural firms finding it harder to move around because of poor roads and public transport.
Poor and deteriorating infrastructure can pose severe damage on business growth and viability, hence the lack of such amenities has led to extremely high cost of operating businesses in Nigeria. Other factors like; cost of sourcing for raw materials, transportation, internet services and finished products all add up, often leading to the provision of poor service delivery rendered to customers just for the business to keep afloat and possibly break even.
Thus, adequate and basic infrastructure can act as a catalyst for economic growth beyond the usual ease it provides. A good example is the establishment of the IPP project launched at Sura-Shopping Complex, Simpson road in Lagos Island. A project handled by Rural Electrification Authority under the Office of the Vice President of Nigeria. The initiative was very basic, focused on providing regular and reliable power supply to the over 1,000 shops and offices within Sura-Shopping Complex.
Upon the commencement of this project, it was observed that beyond the power supply, more jobs were created due to an uninterrupted power supply at the complex. The offices and business owners could almost immediately afford to employ more hands, do shifts (including night shifts) for more production. Initiatives like this would further encourage SMEs and as well as improve our ease of doing business index.
Workable Models for SMEs Funding
One viable model I have seen is the way some of the Micro Finance Institution dispense loan. The Group-lending model requires individuals to form a group of five and receive five-days financial training to obtain a loan from the lending Institution.
The emphasis from the very outset is to strengthen the SMEs organisationally and to build their capacity to plan and implement micro-level development decisions. (Grameen Group Lending Model).
The Government can thereby adopt this approach and provide loan to a group of different clusters of SMEs based on their demographics, business type, location and the raw materials required to run those businesses. Other lending models can also then be adopted here.
Many would say such initiatives will not be successful in Nigeria going by the previous experience of bad debts, unaccountability, lack of adequate records, and poor or lack of identity management systems. My assumption is the same, however, one begs to wonder if the community lending Initiative could make a difference which allows one to be responsible for another?
For instance; one can only qualify for loans if my fellow community members are fruitful in the commitment to repayment. Then there is bound to be an exponential growth in the SME sector when each member depends on another to grow. Currently, for some of the micro-finance companies – these clusters can only qualify for a bigger loan after repayment.
In my days in the FMCG sector, working at the production line, a bonus is received when targets are met as a group and not as individuals. As the goals are met as a group, this qualifies the group to be engaged with a bigger task as they continue to grow as a unit. Is this method applicable to the SMEs?
The TraderMoni initiative, for example, is focused on providing loans for petty traders that are unbanked but require access to funds to run their small businesses. Corporate Finance Houses might not be able to capture these set of the population due to their locations, lack of interest to own a bank account or the knowledge gap on why being financially included is vital to them.
TraderMoni can advance to the next stage on requirements where traders would only qualify for their next loan when they have successfully registered a bank account to their name through USSD service. Would such an initiative improve financial inclusion? I believe so.
Government Agencies like the SMEDAN; are responsible for initiating and articulating policy ideas for small and medium enterprises growth and development. If they further enrich their database, FDI inflows may grow based on credible and available data showing the opportunity for growth.
The Government’s form of supporting SMEs doesn’t necessarily have to be financial support all the time; as Government can even lease equipment to a group of farmers in community X as a service for five years. This support would promote the effective use of these equipment’s and drive more farmers to make the best use of the time allotted to them.
NISRAL, a CBN initiative founded in 2013 currently executes the equipment-as-a-service model for farmers in rural areas. The major advantage with this initiative is that every member of such a group depends on each other to ensure the funds being received are used for its real purpose while profit generated is channeled back into the business.
SMEs in Nigeria
In Nigeria, the importance of SMEs in the process of social and economic development cannot be neglected, and its significance in the development of the country.
It was summarized in Nigeria’s third National Development Plan, 1975-1980; as the generation of employment opportunities, stimulation of indigenous entrepreneurship, facilitation of effective mobilization of local resources including capital and skill as well as a reduction in regional disparities.
Despite the slow growth of SMEs development, Impact of SMEs has been a known fact dated back as 1975!
The Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council) statistics revealed that 99.7 percent of U.S. businesses are SMEs. However, there are several barriers that the US SME sector still faces, especially in commodities.
The significant barriers to trading include insufficient access to finance, high transportation costs, tax laws, and rules, maintaining profitability, developing new products, language, and cultural differences. Gaps like these signify no SME ecosystem is perfect, and they are required to keep evolving with time as new challenges arise. Despite the challenges in the SMEs market in the US, the sectors still contribute 47% of total employment.
While in developing economies like India, the contribution of the SME sector to manufacturing output, employment, and exports of the country is quite significant. It is noted that regarding the value, the SME sector of India accounts for 45% of the manufacturing output and 40% of the total exports. India’s SME sector employs around 42 million people in over 13 million units throughout the country. (Source: Department of Commerce, Govt. of India)
Conclusion
It is evident from my article that SMEs contribution is considerably high in economic development whether it is a developed country or developing country. Not only financially subsidized promotion is essential, but the strategic implementation becomes vital for sustainable development of the SME sector. Strategic implementation takes care of financial aspects, human resource, marketing, research and development, technology, and corporate governance in the SME sector.
SMEs in developed Nations are not only relying on Credit availability but Technological Innovation and Infrastructural Policies. Hence, it is critical for Policymakers to create an enabling and sustainable environment as a bedrock for SMEs to flourish. Great to recall the words of Richard Branson; “A business starts small”.
Adewale A. Adeyipo, Ag. Group managing director, CWG plc,
E-Business
NIMC Says NIN Services Back Online

National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has announced the restoration of its National Identification Number (NIN) verification services nationwide.
This, according to the commission, follows the completion of a system maintenance exercise.
In a statement issued on Friday, the NIMC confirmed that all previously disrupted services have resumed.
“NIMC wishes to inform the general public that the recent technical maintenance has been completed and all services have been restored,” the statement read.
The NIMC urged Nigerians seeking to enroll for NIN to visit the its official website to locate the nearest enrollment centers.
The agency also encouraged individuals to make use of its self-service portal for tasks such as data modification, including name changes.
To further ease the verification process, the Commission recommended downloading the NIMC NameAuth app (oath.app) from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store for quick and secure NIN authentication.
NIMC expressed appreciation for the public’s patience during the service disruption, which had impacted banks, telecom providers, and government agencies that rely on NIN verification for their operations.
E-Business
Report Reveals African Organizations Dangerously Overestimating Cyber defences

Many businesses are overestimating their defence against cyber attacks, which creates a significant human risk blind spot. A new KnowBe4 report exposes a worrying disconnect between what leaders think about their cyber security readiness and what employees experience.
According to the KnowBe4 Africa Human Risk Management Report 2025, based on insights from cyber security decision-makers across 30 African countries, despite high awareness, a critical gap exists in turning that awareness into actual readiness and resilient behaviour.
Key findings from the KnowBe4 Africa Human Risk Management Report 2025:
Confidence vs awareness: While cyber security awareness is high, leaders express uncertainty about their workforce’s ability to act on that awareness. Many feel employees may overestimate their capabilities in recognising, reporting and mitigating threats.
The need for adaptive and personalised security awareness training: Many companies fail to personalise security awareness training to specific roles or risk exposures.
Widespread BYOD usage: A large percentage of employees (between 41% and 80%) use their personal devices for work.
AI policy development is lagging: Many companies (46%) are still in the process of developing policies for using AI tools in the workplace.
Regional variation: Southern Africa trains more, East Africa governs AI better and West/Central Africa sees the most human-related security incidents.
This gap is significant because Africa has become an attractive target to cyber criminals, especially those that launch AI-powered attacks. A LexisNexis Risk Solutions study found 60% of South African organisations have seen an increase in AI-facilitated financial crime – above the 56% global average.
Kehinde Popoola, regional manager and key representative for West and East Africa at Rubrik, said digital transformation is gaining momentum in Africa and companies are more exposed to cyber risk. The Rubrik executive adds that amid an increase in threats, it is crucial that organisations adopt an assumed breach mindset.
The KnowBe4 research shows that cyber security preparedness and the actual structures required to support secure behaviour seem misaligned.
The report highlights that just 10% of cyber security leaders are fully confident that staff would report a phishing attack or other cyber threat, despite rating employee security awareness of cyber threats at four out of five or higher.
There is also a significant perception gap between decision-makers and general employees in Africa regarding security awareness training, with 68% of leaders believing that training is tailored to roles, compared to only a third of employees feeling adequately trained.
KnowBe4 asserts that many organisations only conduct annual or biannual training that is too generic to effectively change behaviour, contributing to uncertainty about its effectiveness.
According to another report, the KnowBe4 African Cybersecurity and Awareness Report 2025, which focuses on end-user based responses, only 43% of African respondents felt confident in their ability to recognise a cyber threat, and just one in three believed their security awareness training was adequately tailored to their role. This comparison suggests the development of a dangerous perception gap in many organisations.
“There’s a disconnect here – between what leaders think is happening and what employees are actually experiencing,” says Anna Collard, SVP content strategy and evangelist at KnowBe4 Africa. “The data shows that without procedural and cultural follow-through, awareness simply doesn’t translate into readiness.”
“The continent’s cyber security posture may be more confident than it is truly resilient,” Collard adds.
E-Business
Domain of Deception as Attackers Deploy Spyware Under Guise of Legal Threats

Kaspersky has detected a rapidly escalating malicious campaign that has targeted over 1,100 corporate users since June 2025. The attackers pose as a legal firm and in their emails threaten recipients with lawsuits over alleged domain name patent violations, aiming to deploy malware.
Victims who opened and launched the attached files – that mimicked legal documents – had a Trojan installed on their devices, and the attackers could spy on the content of their screens. Organisations across healthcare, finance, and education sectors have been targeted.
The campaign began with 95 emails on June 11 and has since continued to escalate. Apart from claiming that the recipient’s domain name violates patented combinations of a major brand and threatening litigation, in the email the fake legal bureau also expresses the patent holders’ interest in acquiring the domain and offers getting acquainted with the details of the alleged violations by opening the attached archive with “documents”.
It is worth noting that the attackers, likely to avoid detection, attach an archive that is not password protected, and inside it includes another archive that is password protected and a file containing the password along with it.
After the user entered the archive password and clicked on the alleged legal document inside, a Trojan was installed on the device. The user saw a message displayed that read, “This document cannot be opened on this device. Try opening it on another windows device,” and simultaneously the Tor Browser was covertly downloaded and installed in the background.
Through it, the malware regularly sent snapshots of the user’s screen to the attackers over the Tor network. The malware also autostarts whenever the computer is restarted.
“This campaign is a sophisticated blend of psychological manipulation and technical deception, leveraging fear of legal action to coerce businesses into executing harmful files hidden in attached archives. Its rapid growth since June 11 underscores the urgency for organisations to bolster defenses.
Victims face the risk of losing their private data. Robust email security, employee training, and swift incident reporting are essential to counter this evolving threat,” comments Anna Lazaricheva, spam analyst at Kaspersky.
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