To avoid Omatek experience, BoI warns women entrepreneurs over loan abuse
The Bank of Industry (BoI) has commenced disbursement of loans to about 1,000 women entrepreneurs in Plateau State, with stern warning to beneficiaries to avoid diversion or abuse of the facility.
Business Hilights recalls that the major problem that pushed former leading indigenous Computer manufacturing group, Omatek Computers managed by late Engineer Florence Seriki was wrong use of loan facility secured from BoI. The company was sealed following a court ruling secured by BoI over the company’s inability to repay a loan it secured to grow the company.
Currently, the company’s head office and production centre are under lock and keys of the bank of Industry.
Though there had been appeals to the Minister of Communications to consider Omatek Computers a Too Big To Fail (TBTF) company and come to its rescue so as to encourage local content in ICT and accessories manufacturing in the country.
Addressing the loan beneficiaries in Plateau State, Managing Director of the bank, Mr. Olukayode Pitan who explained that the new facility is coming under the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP), said the soft loans will range between N10,000 and N50,000 per beneficiary.
Tagged ‘MarketMoni Alert’, the initiative is one of the Federal Government’s social intervention programmes aimed at helping micro enterprise operators in the country to bridge the gaps in access to affordable credit identified as a major constraint to business growth.
Details gathered by our correspondent showed that GEEP, which is being administered by the BoI, seeks to provide non-interest loans raging from N10,000 to N100,000 to 1.6 million beneficiaries in the 774 local governments of the federation.
