MTN, SMEDAN partner to accelerate SME digital growth nationwide
MTN Nigeria and the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) have entered a strategic partnership aimed at accelerating the digital growth, competitiveness and sustainability of more than 40 million Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) across the country.
The agreement was formalised during a signing ceremony held on Thursday, November 27, 2025, at the MTN Plaza in Lagos.
MTN Nigeria’s Chief Operating Officer, Ayham Moussa, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to national economic development, describing MSMEs as the backbone of Nigeria’s productive and employment landscape.
He said the initiative would give businesses the digital tools they need to reach customers, access funding and expand into wider markets, adding that the collaboration aligns with MTN’s commercial and developmental objectives.
Chief Enterprise Business Officer Lynda Saint-Nwafor noted that the partnership was designed to meet businesses at their point of need. She explained that nano, micro, small and medium enterprises require different forms of support, ranging from guidance and resources to market opportunities and workforce development.
She added that MTN was committed to driving financial inclusion, digital adoption and capacity building to help enterprises scale efficiently.
SMEDAN’s Director General, Charles Odii, highlighted the significance of leveraging private-sector expertise to achieve national enterprise development goals. With approximately 40 million MSMEs and only about 400 SMEDAN staff, he said the agency must rely heavily on technology, data and strategic partners.
He emphasised that MTN’s infrastructure and nationwide tools for payments, identity services, hosting and learning make the partnership a natural fit.
Odii explained that the collaboration would support businesses using SMEDAN’s four-point GROW framework: Guidance, Resources, Opportunities and Workforce Development.
He disclosed that the agency had already created over 100,000 jobs within two years and expects the MTN partnership to significantly accelerate job creation, business expansion and enterprise modernisation nationwide.
The partnership will drive joint initiatives centred on digital inclusion, access to finance, capacity building and providing verified information to MSMEs. Both organisations said the shared platform would help address persistent gaps in communication, misinformation and access to growth opportunities for millions of small businesses.
The event concluded with the formal signing of the Memorandum of Understanding, paving the way for the immediate deployment of tools, content and support resources designed to strengthen MSMEs across the country.
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