Managing Director/CEO, BoI, Olukayode Pitan, disclosed this during a trade and supply chain finance workshop in Lagos, where two new IFC reports were launched.

He said: “We are delighted to partner with the IFC on this laudable initiative towards ensuring that Nigerian businesses are not only able to boost their domestic production capabilities, but also able to partake actively in regional and global value chains for improved trade and economic growth.”

MSMEs account for about 86 percent of employment in Nigeria and contribute 50 percent of nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP), but receive significantly less finance from the private sector than the average in sub-Saharan Africa.

Based on a survey of about 1,000 MSMEs across Nigeria, a study by IFC tagged, ‘Market Bite Nigeria: Innovation Offers Key to the Broader MSME Finance Market’, identified an unmet demand for credit by Nigerian MSMEs of approximately N13 trillion, equivalent to $32.2 billion. Some of the reasons attributed to this gap include regulatory constraints and gaps in financial infrastructure, as many financial institutions also perceive MSMEs as too costly and too risky to serve.

In another report on ‘Supply Chain Finance Market Assessment in Nigeria’, IFC noted that MSMEs generate more than half of the Nigerian supply chain finance opportunity, accounting for N1.4 trillion ($3.5 billion).

IFC research shows that improving the availability and cost of trade and supply chain finance could boost trade volumes by 8 percent to 16 percent, supporting economic growth and diversification in Nigeria and other key markets in the region.

In his remark, Kalim M. Shah, IFC’s Senior Country Manager for Nigeria, Liberia and Sierra Leone, said: “Strengthening supply chains and trade flows through additional finance could set the stage for faster growth, economic diversification, and poverty reduction in Nigeria and the region. We are glad to present these new reports with data and insights to encourage further investment to close the MSME finance gap.”