Onwubuke Melvin
The Bank of Industry has extended the deadline for submitting applications for the Rural Area Program for Investment and Development for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises and Community groups in rural areas until June 12.
This disclosure was made via the official X handle of the bank, stating that the deadline was extended to afford the entrepreneurs the opportunity for the loan application.
It states, “The application deadline for the RAPID initiative has been extended to June 12, 2024, allowing all interested entrepreneurs the opportunity to participate.”
Under the RAPID program, MSMEs in rural areas can receive loans up to N10 million at 5% interest for three years.
The program aims to assist communities in rural and economically disadvantaged areas in utilizing available resources to develop enterprises, providing employment, and improve their standard of living.
BOI in May launched the RAPID programme in Lagos, aimed at empowering 10 beneficiaries per State and the Federal Capital Territory.
The bank noted that interested applicants visit its website to apply.
The Federal Government had launched a number of grants and loans programs following the removal of fuel subsidy to mitigate its effects
The programs include; the N50,000 grant to nano businesses across the 744 local government areas of the country, a N200 billion grant to Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) all over the country.
The Federal Government’s Presidential Conditional Grant Scheme (PCGS), offers non-repayable financial grants to eligible small business owners in various sectors, including trading, food services, ICT, transportation, creative industries, and artisans.
The Bank of Industry is also working with the Federal Government to provide manufacturers and SMEs in all parts of the country with a loan amounting to 200 billion Naira, which has been launched.
