By Onwa Ekor, Calabar
Cross River governor, Prince Bassey Otu, has bagged the 2024 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) most friendly governor award in the South-South region.
The award was presented by the Nation’s President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, during the 2024 National MSME conference held recently at the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
The conference remains a brainchild of the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Charles Odii, with the theme, ‘Grow Nigerian – Sustaining a digital and innovation-driven economy.’
It remains a clarion call for stakeholders to embrace the power of SMEs in the quest for economic growth.
Presenting the award, President Tinubu who was represented by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, at the event, extolled Otu for his MSME exploits in the State.
He maintained that the governor has proven himself a competent and efficient leader by staying tops in the region, while setting the pace for others to follow in the sector which is geared towards repositioning the life and times of the citizenry.
Receiving the award on behalf of the governor, the Commissioner for wealth creation and employment, Hon. Paddy Egbede, lauded the organizers of the event for the recognition of the efforts of the Cross River governor, admitting that the award serves as motivation to do more in line with Governor Otu’s mantra, which is ‘People First.’
Accompanied by the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of MEDA, Great Ogban, and the Board chairman of MEDA, Essessien Edem, at the event which drew various stakeholders from far and wide, the Commissioner remarked that among other feats recorded in various sectors by the Otu-led administration, the governor has also prioritized MSME development in the state as a corridor to economic growth and self reliance.
It would be recalled that the Cross River government had in recent times, changed the economic landscape of the State by empowering MSMEs with the right resources to boost their businesses, notably among the many interventions is the one billion naira commitment to develop MSMEs in the State.
The award presentation was witnessed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, the Honorable Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite, her counterpart in the Ministry of Arts, Culture & Creative Economy, Hon. Hannatu Musawa as well as the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Charles Odii, among others.
