Sterling Bank Limited has partnered with Export and Sell Nigeria Limited to train Small and Medium-scale enterprise operators on sustainable export practices.
The collaboration unfolded through an intensive four-day capacity-building boot camp, attracting over 130 export-oriented business operators.
The Group Head of Agric and Solid Minerals Finance at Sterling Bank, Dr Olushola Obikanye, underscoring the imperative for capacity building, cited three pivotal factors crucial for the flourishing of the agricultural sector in Nigeria.
“Access to information, markets, and finance are fundamental. Without addressing the first two, financial intermediation remains futile,” he said.
Obikanye stressed the need to ensure that domestically produced goods secure access to well-structured markets primed for their uptake, affirming the bank’s unwavering commitment to collaborative endeavours aimed at co-creating products and devising innovative solutions to bolster the private sector’s vitality within the agricultural domain.
He remarked, “Given agriculture’s significant GDP contribution, SMEs represent the most viable intervention avenue in the sector, transcending traditional industry players.”
In a similar vein, the Head of the Commercial Banking Division at Sterling Bank, Mr Akporee Idenedo, highlighted the bank’s broader vision, highlighting its aspiration to foster wealth creation and enrich livelihoods through proactive initiatives.
“We strive to empower entrepreneurs beyond mere financial transactions,” he articulated, “By nurturing activities geared towards enhancing exports, we catalyse entrepreneurial empowerment.
“Our conviction lies in the belief that nurturing entrepreneurship leads to wealth generation, and our export conference serves as a pivotal avenue to realise this vision. Given agriculture’s intrinsic link to exports, this platform underscores our commitment to empowering lives, generating wealth, and contributing to Nigeria’s socio-economic advancement,” he noted.
Head of SME Products at Sterling Bank, Bolanle Tyson, revealed that the boot camp session was a follow-up to the inaugural Export to Wealth conference, a collaborative effort between the bank and EAS.
She revealed that the extensive participation in the event exemplified the burgeoning interest among businesses eager to tap into export opportunities.
Earlier in March, the World Trade Organisation said that Nigeria had lost its leading position in the agriculture export markets because its agricultural commodities did not meet the sanitary and phytosanitary requirements of the foreign markets.
Punch