The Bank of Industry (BoI) has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting local companies that have continued to invest in Nigeria despite the challenges posed by the global economic downturn.
During a facility tour of several BoI-funded companies in Lagos, Dr Olasupo Olusi, the Managing Director of BoI, praised the resilience and determination of these businesses. He highlighted the importance of such companies in filling the voids left by those that have exited the market, particularly in critical sectors like pharmaceuticals.
Olusi encouraged Nigerian enterprises to explore regional and global markets, emphasizing Nigeria’s competitive capabilities. He commended businesses that have positively impacted the Nigerian economy and aligned with the BoI’s thematic areas of SMEs, youth and skills, digital economy, climate, infrastructure, and gender.
One of the companies visited, Imose Technologies Limited, was commended for its investment in the local value chain for the production of tablets, smartphones, laptops, and desktop computers. BoI expressed its support for such initiatives that create employment opportunities and contribute to the growth of the Nigerian economy.
The bank also reaffirmed its commitment to supporting local automobile manufacturing, as evidenced by its visit to GAC Motor’s assembly plant. BoI’s recent syndicated fundraising of €2bn will further enhance its capacity to lend to thousands of enterprises in Nigeria.
Dr Varkey Verghese, Managing Director of Jawa Pharmaceutical Nigeria Limited, expressed gratitude for BoI’s financial interventions and emphasized the need to fill the gaps created by the exit of some companies. He assured BoI of his company’s continued investment and expansion in Nigeria.
GAC Motors also highlighted the potential of the Nigerian automobile sector, noting its current contribution of only 0.4% to the GDP. With BoI’s support, the company aims to increase this contribution to 10%.
