The Director-General, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Mr Olawale Fasanya, has reiterated the need for small and medium-scale businesses to tap into the export market.

Fasanya made the expression at an export facilitation program for 100 entrepreneurs in Enugu on Thursday.

He said the programme, organised in collaboration with the Nigerian Export Processing Council (NEPC), was to boost MSMEs' contributions to Nigeria’s export earnings.

Represented by Mr Monday Ewans, Director Export Promotion, Fasanya said that MSMEs contributed only 6.21 per cent to Nigeria’s export earnings in 2021.

The D-G said that global export economies depended on efficient export processing and a holistic approach to managing end-to-end trade transactions.

He stated that MSMEs were often faced with challenges that restricted their entry into the export market.

”With this realisation, it is important for MSMEs to take advantage of the international supply and value chains developed by SMEDAN.

”So this programme is intended to build their capacities and prepare them for effective participation in the export market,” he said.

Fasanya said that so far, the programme had been implemented in 22 states with no fewer than 40,000 entrepreneurs already trained.

Also, NEPC South-East Zonal Coordinator, Mr Arnold Jackson, expressed the council’s commitment to empowering MSME operators to advance export trade in the country.

”This programme is very critical to their participation in the export market. They need to make good use of it.

”They require skills in product packaging and marketing strategies to effectively harness opportunities in the export market,” he said.

Speaking on behalf of the entrepreneurs, Mrs Loveline Nnenna described the programme as enriching and well-intended.