Ekiti goes tough to recover N1.5b micro-credit loans

TRACKING >>Ekiti State Government has adopted a strategic that would facilitate prompt and stress -free repayment of loans running to N1.5 billion granted the people under the Small and Medium Enterprise Support Scheme since the administration of Chief Segun Oni to date.

Special Adviser to the Governor on Micro-credit and Enterprise Development Agency (MEDA), Otunba Kayode Fasawe at a meeting with the loan guarantors in Ado-Ekiti revealed that the government was determined to recover all the loans to the last kobo.

Fasawe said MEDA, in conjunction with the participating Micro Finance Banks (MFBs), had sought the support of the Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Accountant General (AG) for the deduction of such loans from the salaries of the guarantors who are public servants beginning from the month of September, this year.

He urged them to prevail on the beneficiaries to begin repayment to protect their own incomes.

Fasawe said the state government was passionate about workers’ plight, which informed the delay in the implementation of the policy and the eventual call for the meeting and dialogues on the way forward.

The Special Adviser, who said the attitude of the people on loan repayment has deprived the state from accessing further funds from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), said this had been counter-productive to the economic growth of the state.

Appraising the success level of the policy direction, the MEDA boss added that over N30 million have been recovered during the first three weeks of its implementation, through the use of text messages and dialogues with the guarantors.

Director of Small and Medium Enterprise in the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industries, Mr. Ayo Ilesanmi, said it was quite disheartening that loans beneficiaries consider the money as free gift or their own share of the national cakes, adding that such beliefs have prevented other people from benefiting from government supports for growing businesses.