Nigeria has access to funding, yet struggles to find viable startups to invest in, according to SMEDAN

Nigeria's primary challenge is no longer the availability of funding for startups, but rather the scarcity of investment-ready businesses that can attract and effectively utilize available capital, according to the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria.

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To address this issue, the agency is training a new generation of entrepreneurship trainers to equip young Nigerians with the necessary skills to build innovative, technology-driven, and globally competitive businesses.

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The Director, Director-General’s Office, SMEDAN, Onesi-Lawani, represented the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer, Charles Odii, at the commencement of the two-week Training of Trainers programme under the Abuja Centre for Entrepreneurship Project in Abuja.

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The programme aims to produce ACE-certified trainers capable of grooming young Nigerians to build and scale investment-ready enterprises, as stated by the Head of the Corporate Affairs Unit, SMEDAN, Moshood Lawal, in a statement issued on Monday.

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Onesi-Lawani congratulated the participants, noting that the selection process was highly competitive, with over 1,100 responses to the call for applications, and only 30 candidates ultimately selected for the training after a rigorous shortlisting process.

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The Project Management Consortium shortlisted 80 candidates across the Business Management and Artificial Intelligence streams, before another round of interviews produced the 30 successful participants currently undergoing the training.

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Onesi-Lawani urged the participants to view the programme as an opportunity to become catalysts for a new generation of Nigerian entrepreneurs, emphasizing that Nigeria has significant funding opportunities for startups, but many businesses lack the structure, innovation, scalability, and business models required by investors.

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He stated that significant funding opportunities exist for Nigerian startups, but there remains a shortage of investment-ready businesses capable of attracting available capital, and the participants should focus on developing entrepreneurs with the capacity to build globally competitive and scalable enterprises.

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Onesi-Lawani identified key opportunity areas under the ACE Project, including fintech, agritech, healthtech, logistics, and mobility, as well as the creative economy, such as digital media, fashion, gaming, animation, and film.

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Nigeria remains Africa's leading startup destination, home to five of the continent's eight unicorns, and Onesi-Lawani expressed confidence that the training would help Nigerian youths develop businesses capable of achieving similar global success.

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The two-week programme is expected to deepen the participants' commitment to the objectives of the ACE Project and strengthen the country's entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem.

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The Abuja Centre for Entrepreneurship is a flagship initiative of SMEDAN, implemented in collaboration with the Korea International Cooperation Agency, and supported by a $12m commitment from the South Korean Government to establish a world-class Skills Acquisition Centre in Abuja.

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The project aims to strengthen Nigeria's entrepreneurship ecosystem through entrepreneurship education, digital innovation, business incubation and acceleration, institutional capacity development, and policy support.

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Through the ACE Project, SMEDAN seeks to identify, develop, and support young Nigerians with innovative ideas and high-growth potential, providing them with the knowledge, skills, mentorship, and networks required to build scalable and globally competitive enterprises.

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The training comes amid growing efforts by the Federal Government and development partners to deepen Nigeria's startup ecosystem, improve access to capital, and increase the contribution of small businesses and innovative enterprises to economic growth.

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However, the persistent gap between available funding and the capacity of many startups to meet investment requirements remains a major challenge for the sector, and the latest initiative is expected to focus on building a pipeline of businesses capable of moving from ideas and early-stage ventures to scalable enterprises that can attract domestic and international capital.