Obi urges govt to support MSMEs growth beyond tax incentives

Peter Obi, Labour Party Presidential Candidate in the 2023 General Elections, has called on Government to deepen support to all critical sectors of the country’s economy.

Obi made this call at the launch of a book, entitled, ‘Just Go Further, Become a Total Entrepreneur,’ in Lagos, saying business owners without accounting and finance background should incorporate entrepreneurs into their business to make it scalable.

“They have no relationship with government. Government doesn’t care about them, apart from tax. It’s the only country where relationships between business and government is tax,” Obi said.

The former governor of Anambra State, also urged the government to focus on making the economy more productive.

According to him, a thriving MSMEs/SME will create more jobs for the growing youth population, which will also enable the government to earn more tax revenue.

“And people will tell you tax is low in Nigeria. The more productive you are, the more you can create jobs, the more you can tax people,” Obi said.

Obi also called on Government to pay close attention to small businesses, which are the engine room of the economy by ways of recognition.

“The reason why today we are not thriving the way we should is because we are not celebrating our entrepreneurial success. We are not even supporting them,” Obi said.

Ebele Obi, author, ‘Just Go Further, Become a Total Entrepreneur,’ said Nigeria need to deepen and elevate apprenticeships to a national level, especially into school curriculums.

“We need to actually establish apprenticeships very much more in Nigeria, because that’s what’s driving economies in Germany, and some other countries, even in the UK,” she said.

She also advocated for an holistic review of the country’s education curriculum, especially at the basic education level to include apprenticeships, just like what happens in Igbo land.

“I also think that entrepreneurship and finance is not something that has been talked about enough. I grew up in a trading family, and then I think that’s one of why I’m able to survive in some things,” she said.

Oseloka Henry Obaze, a former UN Senior diplomat and book reviewer, said the 240-page book is segmented into three self-explanatory parts.

According to him, part one talks about becoming an entrepreneur; part two focuses on sustaining the growth as an entrepreneur, and third part deals with succession planning.

Obaze said the book is fundamentally targeted at dreamers, especially those who think they can become viable and full-blown entrepreneurs.

“The book is a motivational book written by an entrepreneur, a budding entrepreneur. Essentially, it has three vital points. Why? How to? And the gateways to entrepreneurship,” he said.