How Entrepreneurs, MSMEs can secure over N1 Million Loan from SMEDAN

The small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has launched a Portal where Business Owners especially Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) owners can access loan facilities at ease.

The Agency while encouraging MSMEs owners to register their businesses and obtain a SMEDAN Certificate in 2020 assured that it would facilitate access to SMEDAN Conditional Grant Scheme (Grants of up to N50,000 per MSME); Priority funding from public and private sector financial institutions, including International Donor Agencies; Empowerment Programs and Entrepreneurship Training; Business Insurance and many more.

In view of the above, SMADAN developed the Credit Information Portal (SMEDAN CIP) https://cip.smedan.gov.ng, and partnered 50 Banks, 88 Bank Branches, providing 880 available Loan Offers, facilitated under 4 loan types: Personal Loans, Mortgage Loans, Business Loans, Credit Loans.

Most Loan Offers in the SMEDAN CIP Portal have low interest rate down to 5% rate and up to 20% high, and longer duration of 6months to 1year. This makes SMEDAN CIP a financial hub for MSMEs Owners searching for suitable loan for their Businesses. Making financial decisions and choice of funding has been made easy with SMEDAN CIP Portal.

According to SMEDAN, "the Idea of this website is to create a database of financial information in all the 36 states of the federation including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja so as to ease up the task of sourcing for information regarding available credit facilities for Micro, Small and Medium enterprises (MSMEs).

"The Portal provides an information pool that will assist Enterpreneurs make informed decisions in getting loans and credits from financial institutions within their locations."

Describing the objective of the SMEDAN CIP Portal, the Agency said it is meant to identify the types of credit facilities available in the financial institutions in each State; provide information if there are credit facilities specially tailored for women by financial institutions as well as the challenges faced; inform the public about available credit facilities, as well as to access the extent to which the public respond to these facilities; find out the ease of accessibility of the different categories of the available credit facilities; and identify the cost of credit for different categories of credit facilities and for each range of amount and tenure.

How to Access the SMEDAN Credit Information Portal (SMEDAN CIP)

1. Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MEMEs) owners must have registered their Business with SMEDAN, possess SMEDAN Certificates with SMEDAN ID "SUIN" Numbers. If you haven't registered your Business with SMEDAN, read SMEDAN begins mass MSMEs Online Registration -Registered Businesses to have access to grants and more

2. Open the SMEDAN CIP link https://cip.smedan.gov.ng

3. Select the type of loan. There are 4 types of types of Loans in portal which are Personal Loans, Mortgage Loans, Business Loans, Credit Loans.

4. Search for Available Loans by: choosing the Loan Purpose, selecting Age Group, Employment Status, choose if you wish to search for available Loan in your State or all the States, type in Loan Amount click on "Check Availability".

5. A list of Financial Institutions offering loans compatible with your request appears.

6. Choose your desired Financial Institution by clicking on "View Details and Apply"

7. Read up all Information, Copy out or Screenshot the Loan Information and Contant Information of Loan Institution.

8. Fill in required information which includes: Business/Company Name, Your Name, Your Phone Number, Your Location (State), Amount Needed, SMEDAN ID, State why you need the Loan.