Lagos disburses N1.9bn to small businesses

The Lagos State Government says it disbursed nearly N1.9 billion in loans and grants to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in 2025 as part of efforts to stimulate economic growth and support entrepreneurship.

Commissioner for Wealth Creation and Employment, Akinyemi Ajigbotafe, disclosed this on Thursday during the 2026 Ministerial Press Briefing held in Alausa, Ikeja.

According to him, the intervention was carried out through the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund to strengthen small businesses, create jobs and improve livelihoods across the state.

Ajigbotafe said affordable loans worth N1.91 billion were provided to 4,036 MSMEs, while grants exceeding N23 million were disbursed to 65 businesses to support expansion and operational sustainability.

“The state government remains committed to empowering entrepreneurs and supporting businesses to thrive in line with the T.H.E.M.E.S Plus Development Agenda of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration,” he said.

The commissioner added that the ministry also focused on inclusive economic empowerment by providing entrepreneurship training and start-up tools to 1,050 Persons With Disabilities within the last 18 months.

He further disclosed that residents in underserved communities benefited from various innovation and skills acquisition programmes aimed at improving economic opportunities.

Ajigbotafe said the ministry also trained 200 unemployed youths in Full-Stack Web Development and Data Analysis under its ICT programme and provided them with laptops to support their careers.

On employment generation, he noted that the Lagos State Graduate Internship Placement Programme had continued to bridge the gap between classroom learning and workplace experience.

According to him, more than 6,500 graduates have benefited from the initiative across the five divisions of Lagos since its inception, while 2,500 graduates were placed during the 2024 cycle, which ended in 2025.

He explained that participants undergo three weeks of employability training before deployment for a three-month paid internship and receive a monthly stipend of N60,000 to support transportation and other logistics.