The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has disclosed that Nigerians don't like repaying loans, accusing entrepreneurs of diverting loans for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) into personal use such as buying cars and marrying of more wives.
The director-general of SMEDAN, Mr Charles Odii, disclosed this at the People's Roundtable Conference on Thursday.
Odii, who was represented by the deputy director in the Enterprise Development and Promotion Department of SMEDAN, Charity Abah, said while the agency does not give direct loans to MSMEs, it stands as a middleman between them and the lenders.
"And I know that one basic challenge and issue that we've had over the years with MSMEs is the fact that when SMEs, Nigerians, take loans, they don't want to repay. That is a fact.
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"We have been part of so many loan programmes that we've facilitated as a middleman. We are still running with it for the past five, six years. Some people will collect those loans and divert it. Some will go and buy cars, some will go and marry more wives, and so on and so forth," he said.
He continued, "And there are some loans that are meant to be revolving. We are supposed to get, bring it back so that other Nigerians can access it. But we discovered that a lot of our people, you know, it has to do with character.
A lot of our people think that when they get that loan, they have got their own national share of the national cake. They disappear. Some will change addresses. So those are some of the issues."
The director-general, Citizenship and Leadership Training Centre (CLTC), Hon. Rinsola Abiola, in her presentation, lamented the seeming gap between the leaders and the followers in the country.
She said contrary to beliefs, youth agitation is a demonstration of love for the country.
She said being a citizen and loving your country goes just beyond complaining about what you don't like. "You have every right to, and I'm saying that again, but there are actions that we also need to take as young people, as citizens generally, irrespective of the age bracket we belong to, to assert the power that we actually do have as citizens."
In his welcome remarks, the convener of The People's Roundtable, Emmanuel Ayantayo, represented by Mr Oladeji Adesola, said the gathering brings together leaders, professionals, educators, and policymakers, to bridge Nigeria's knowledge gap through open dialogue, lived experiences, and actionable collaboration across sectors.
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He added that the gathering creates a shared space where ideas meet policy, education meets industry, and citizens meet decision-makers.
