Nigerian undergraduates and graduates with good business and innovative ideas now have the potential to get grants from the Federal Government.
The Central Bank of Nigeria said it was launching a N500m grant scheme that would support such initiatives.
There had been complaints that the government did not have major interventions for youths, either in the form of education loans or business development funds.
But the CBN announced the new scheme in a report titled ‘Guidelines for the implementation of tertiary institutions entrepreneurship scheme’.
It said, “Five top Nigerian polytechnics and universities with the best entrepreneurial pitches/ideas shall be awarded as follows: first place – N150m; second place – N120m; third place – N100m; fourth place – N80m; and fifth place – N50m.”
It added that activities to be covered under the scheme would include innovative start-ups and existing businesses owned by graduates of Nigerian polytechnics and universities in areas such as agribusiness, information technology, creative industry, as well as science and technology.
‘The Punch’ reports that the CBN said agribusiness would include production, processing, storage and logistics, while information technology would include application/software development, business process outsourcing, robotics and data management.
It said the creative industry would include entertainment, artwork, publishing, culinary/event management, fashion, photography, beauty/cosmetics; while science and technology would include medical innovation, robotics, ticketing systems, traffic systems, renewable energy, and waste management.
According to the report, the interest rate will be five per cent per annum and nine per cent effective from March 1, 2022 or as may be prescribed by the CBN.
The beneficiary must apply on the dedicated online portal and provide all requisite documentation to support the application, the CBN said.
It noted that priority would be given to innovative entrepreneurial activities with high potential for export, job creation and transformational impact.
