A grant writing expert, Olugbenga Ogunbowale, yesterday revealed why Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) in Africa, particularly in Nigeria, struggled to attract grants. He said lack of financial capital was the biggest challenge facing entrepreneurs.
Ogunbowale said a few SMEs had the technical competence required to put together a winning grant proposal, adding that SMEs wanted to run their business, not to spend days or weeks researching and writing grants.
Speaking with reporters in Ibadan, Ogunbowale, the co-founder and CEO of Grant Master (Africa’s foremost grant writing marketplace), noted that in addition to lack of technical competence to write grants, SMEs found it hard to find the right kind of grants to apply for, as searching for grant opportunities could be tedious.
He said the challenges inspired him to launch Grant Master, which connected SMEs who wanted to win grants with vetted grant writers.
On how SMEs could attract Grant Funding, Ogunbowale said: “SMEs need to position themselves for funding and learning opportunities. SMEs that win grants typically solve pressing problems people are willing to pay for. Ensure you are duly registered with the government. Make sure your income goes into the SMEs corporate account and not your personal account. Keep financial records, using a financial software or app. Open a website and maintain a good social media presence to showcase what you do. Track your beneficiaries and customers for feedback and testimonials. Funders rarely fund SMEs without any structure, proof of impact or traction.”