By Wilson Adekumola
FirstBank of Nigeria Limited has called on Small and Medium Enterprises to build sustainable revenue base in naira and foreign currencies for their businesses against unexpected business challenges.
The bank’s Group Head of Retail Banking, Oludolapo Adigun, gave this urge during a webinar under the SMEConnect initiative dubbed, ”The Power of Resilience: Building a Strong Business in Times of Uncertainty”, said solid revenue and cash positions prepare SMEs against unexpected business occurrences.
She said SMEConnect is central to FirstBank’s commitment to SME development. The programme, according to her, is focused on empowering businesses through capacity-building initiatives, and strengthening their operational resilience in the business environment.
Adigun stated further that the opportunities in Nigeria’s business with over 200 million population remains a great achievement for businesses within the economy.
Why explaining some of the challenges faced by SMEs to include inadequate infrastructure and tough regulatory environments, volatility in exchange rates, high inflation rate, among others, she admonished SMEs to be resilient, and hardworking to overcome them despite the challenges.
Adigun stressed that FirstBank’s role as an SME-focused institution, boasting a diverse portfolio of over 1,000 Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises..
She equally explained that the benefits of FirstBank’s business diagnostic tool to their businesses, adding that the tools is a resource utilised by the bank to interprete businesses and provide valuable advice on areas of strength and improvement.
The Chief Growth Officer of WhoGohost, Damilola Aransiola, also stated that cash is the lifeblood of every business, noting that businesses should think of creative ways to make money.
“Nigerians have money, we just choose what to spend the money on. Make people to have use for your products, and you will make money. Have a good mix of your revenue stream in local and foreign currencies,” he said.
While also adviding SMEs to find other innovative means and creative partnership to that will enable them to earn more money and strengthen their revenue streams, hee shared his company’s strategy and commitment to excellence.
He also urged SMEs to find creative ways to add value to their operations through innovation, adaptation, and creative partnerships.
He noted that multiple revenue streams help SMEs to keep standing in period of uncertainty.
It was gathered that there were question and answer sessions during which participants across several sectors of the economy expressed their satisfaction with the event and commended FirstBank for its commitment to SMEs development.
