Nigerian govt will soon disburse N150bn palliatives to Manufacturers, MSMEs – Minister

The Nigerian government says it would soon commence disbursement of the N150 billion presidential palliative program to manufacturers and micro, small and medium enterprises.

The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Doris Aniete disclosed this at the weekend in a statement through her spokesperson, Terfa Gyado.

Aniete said over 700,000 applicants have applied for the scheme so far

“Disbursement is yet to start but they are finalising the first batch. To date, about 700,000 applicants have applied,” she said.

She explained that for manufacturers, for loans up to N1 billion, applicants must choose between working capital or asset financing, maintain at least a six-month business/corporate banking relationship, and provide additional documentation as required by the bank.

Recall that in December 2023, the Federal Government unveiled the Presidential Conditional Grant Scheme as part of the Presidential Palliatives Programme to cushion the impact of economic hardship in Nigeria.

The government had dedicated N75 billion to MSMEs and another N75 billion to the manufacturing sector.

However, the Minister had earlier announced a plan to commence disbursement in July 2024.