The Nation Newspaper

Tag: NPC

  • SMEDAN, NPC to partner

    The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SME-DAN) is to partner  the National Productivity Centre (NPC) to enhance small amd medium scale enterprises (SMEs) output.

    In a statement in Abuja SMEDAN’s Assistant Chief Information Officer, Ibrahim Mohammed, said the collaboration was borne out of an urgent need to develop strategies to ensure that problems associated with productivity potential of (SMEs) were addressed.

    It described SMEs as the engine of growth of the economy, saying they have the potential for job creation and could contribute greatly to Gross Domestic product (GDP) of a nation.

    The statement said that SMEs in Nigeria were constrained by several challenges that limited their impact in the country’s economic development.

    “Such challenges include, but are not limited to weak operating capacities in terms of skill, knowledge and attitudes, lack of infrastructure, reliance on obsolete technology and low market access.   “Others are poor access to credit, poor information flow, weak networking among operators in the segment, lack of safeguards against occupational health and environmental hazards and discriminatory legislation.’’

    The statement said that SMEDAN was saddled with the responsibility of developing and promoting micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria.

    It said that SMEDAN had the compelling role of building synergies with other agencies to tackle most of the challenges bedeviling the sector.

    “In view of this, SMEDAN, in collaboration with the NPC, is organising a two-day National workshop tagged Work Place Challenge in the Nigerian Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sector’’.

    The workshop, according to the statement, is slated for May 8 and 9, 2013 at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry Conference and Exhibition Centre in Ikeja. The statement said that the objectives of the two-day workshop included identifying workplace transformation challenges, identifying appropriate productivity improvement tools and techniques for workplace transformation.

    The seminar is also to develop Best Operating Practices (BOP) for Nigerian SMEs and train participants to become workplace environment managers.

  • Boko Haram insurgence causing internal migration – NPC

    Boko Haram insurgence causing internal migration – NPC

    The Chairman of the National Population Commission (NPC), Eze Festus Odimegwu on Wednesday raised an alarm that the Boko Haram insurgence is causing internal migration.

    Speaking in Abuja when the Regional Policy Lesion Officer of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), Ms. Alexia Scarlett visited the NPC headquarters, Odimegwu said urgent steps must be taken to avoid further crisis.

    Migration, he said is a critical issue which must be tackled by government with all supports from donor agencies.

    His words: “We are happy that you are a development partner involved in the promotion of migration as it affects development in Nigerian. We will ask that you continue to give us attention because migration has become a critical issue even in security of nations.

    “With some of the happenings in Nigeria, in our northeastern region which has to do with the Boko Haram insurgency and the problem of kidnapping in the South east there are obvious implications for internal migration from some of these regions to the other parts of the country.”