ASABA/Nigeria: Some of the beneficiaries of the Delta State Trained and Empowered Entrepreneurs under the aegis of STEP/YAGEP has appealed to the Delta State Government to grant them special interventions to help upscale their businesses to international level.
STEPreneur Stephen Illoba made the appeal in an interview in his fashion home in Asaba, Stephen Africa. While affirming that many of the STEPreneurs and YAGEPreneurs were doing well, he observed that they require huge capital to expand their businesses.
“I am planning to go into exportation of my products. The reason we need Government’s intervention in terms of capital is to break into new frontiers by procuring machines to meet international standard. We can help Government to create more jobs, but we need finance to achieve our goals,” he disclosed.
He suggested that the Directorate of Youth Monitoring and Mentoring (DYMM) could help determine those that qualify for such Government assistance in terms of special grants or facilitating access to credit facilities.
He stated that Government had trained thousands of youths, suggesting that through the DYMM, a scorecard should be provided for all beneficiaries to assess and measure their performances and success rates in order to assist those doing well to upscale their businesses.
In this regard, “the State Government’s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency should make access to state credit facilities flexible. Our scorecard should be the yardstick to measure our success, and further support package given to facilitate our business growth,” he emphasized.
