The British Council, in collaboration with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) and support from the Investment Climate Reform (ICR) facility, has launched Impact Advisory Group (IAG) to strengthen access to finance for MSMEs and bridge the N3 trillion funding gap hindering their growth in Nigeria.
This was unveiled at the National Roundtable on MSME Financing: “Sustaining Impact: Achieving N3 Trillion Inclusive Financing Options for MSMEs in Nigeria,” in Lagos.
It brought together government representatives, development partners, financial institutions, and private sector leaders to chart coordinated strategies for inclusive MSME financing and policy reforms.
Country Director of British Council, Donna McGowan, said the partnership reflects the council’s commitment to deepening Nigeria’s reform ecosystem and promoting inclusive economic growth.
“As the ICR programme winds down, sustaining outcomes are a priority,” McGowan said. “IAG is a platform to sustain business environment reforms, promote access to finance for women-owned businesses, and establish mechanisms for accountability and coordination among stakeholders.”
Convener of IAG and Chief Executive of Octovio Development, Nelson Okwonna, said the group was set up to harmonise efforts of government, private sector, and donor actors in the MSME ecosystem.
“We realised interventions for MSMEs operate in silos.“The IAG seeks to connect those efforts, close the funding gap, and ensure impact is scaled beyond donor cycles.”
Representing SMEDAN’s chief, a director, Dabureje Onesi-Lawani, stressed the agency’s resolve to improve MSME competitiveness through data-driven policy and public-private collaboration.
He said: “SMEDAN has benefited from ICR facilities in initiatives such as National MSME Policy (2021–2025) and studies on women’s access to finance, but sustaining the impact requires a platform like IAG.
“The collective effort that begins today is aimed at closing the N3 trillion funding gap, and every stakeholder must be part of that process.”
National Escrow Member of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Chief Kola Akosile, emphasized the private sector’s role in formalizing and supporting MSMEs.
“MSMEs make up the backbone of our economy but remain grossly underfunded,” he said. “At NACCIMA, we are collaborating with SMEDAN and the CAC to onboard one million MSMEs into the formal sector within a year, offering free chamber memberships to support growth and accountability.”
