General
Lagos Partners AfreximBank, ImpactHER on Export Readiness Programme for SMEs
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
In an effort to transform Lagos-based businesses into globally competitive exporters, the state government has launched the Lagos SMEs Export Readiness Programme (LASERP) for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
The initiative is in partnership with AfreximBank and ImpactHER. The aim is to build wealth, create jobs, and amplify Lagos State and Nigeria’s economic prosperity.
Already, a total of 253 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) have been shortlisted for the programme, enabling them to scale their businesses beyond national borders under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
At the unveiling of the scheme in Lagos on Wednesday, the Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment in Lagos, Mrs Folashade Bada Ambrose, said, “The concept of export readiness is not just a trending term but an economic imperative.
“In an era marked by regional integration and AfCFTA operationalisation, we cannot afford to keep our vibrant enterprises confined to domestic markets.
“Our MSMEs must evolve from local champions to continental contenders. Nigeria, and Lagos State, in particular, has long been regarded as the economic engine of West Africa.
“But, being an engine is not enough if we are not propelling forward. This programme is the vehicle that will drive us into new markets, beyond borders, and into the centre of intra-African commerce.”
Expressing appreciation to Afreximbank and ImpactHER for their collaboration, commitment to facilitating trade and industrialisation across Africa, and empowerment of women-led businesses on the continent, the Commissioner noted that the week-long training has been meticulously designed to demystify the export process, build practical skills, and create a clear pathway to cross-border trade participation.
She stated that the training starting from Friday, July 4, 2025, will offer participants the opportunity to be immersed in high-value sessions covering export documentation and regulatory compliance, product packaging and labelling standards for international markets, trade finance and export credit guarantees, understanding logistics, customs, and border procedures, market entry strategies, especially under the AfCFTA, digital trade and e-commerce opportunities and gender-responsive exporting for women-led MSMEs.
“At the end of this training, 20 outstanding participants will be selected to represent Lagos at the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF) scheduled to hold in Algiers, Algeria, in September 2025.
“The Fair is a gateway to over 1.3 billion consumers and provides a chance to engage buyers, investors, partners, and policy influencers from across the continent. Our selected trainees will become Lagos’ Export Ambassadors,” she said.
In his remarks, the Director for SME Development at AfreximBank, Mr Ody Akhanoba, explained that empowering SMEs with the resources they need via capacity training presents a significant opportunity to increase Africa’s share of exports.
“We are at the edge of turning on the SME’s capacity to be more competitive in the market. With that in mind, we have taken concrete steps to promote the participation of SMEs in the African landscape through strategic interventions, such as facilitating trade and finance, capacity building, and market access,” he added.
He disclosed that the bank has contributed significantly to providing training capacity to over 3,000 African SMEs through tailored incubator and accelerator programmes similar to the newly launched Lagos State/AfreximBank Accelerator Programme.
Also, the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Dr Olugbenga Aina, described the Accelerator Programme for SMEs as another first that would help to equip Lagos-based SMEs with the necessary technical tools they desire to scale them up to the next level.
Also speaking, the representative of ImpactHER’s founder, Clementina Uzogor, explained that the six-week training programme, comprising four weeks of training and two weeks of mentorship, is meant to enhance and scale participants’ export businesses and provide a platform to network with trade experts and other Nigerian WSMEs.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has confirmed the collapse of five transmission towers along the Ikot Abasi–Eket 132kV Double Circuit Transmission Line.
This was attributed to severe acts of vandalism, as TCN disclosed that the structure collapsed after vandals removed critical structural bracing members.
The affected towers were N9, J4, N10, N11 and N12, the organisation said in a statement on Friday.
It explained that the extensive damage was discovered during a routine joint line patrol conducted on August 9, 2026, by TCN linesmen.
Further inspection revealed that structural members from seven additional towers along the same transmission corridor had also been removed and stolen. The towers, J3, N8, N13, N14, N15, N18 and N19, are now structurally compromised and pose a risk of further collapse.
TCN condemned this act of sabotage and reiterated its commitment to working hard to maintain a robust and reliable national grid.
The statement said that to mitigate the impact on electricity supply, the network has been reconfigured to prioritise supply to Ekim transmission station, leaving Ibom Power as the only station without supply.
TCN said it is mobilising an urgent intervention to complete the reconstruction of the affected sections of the line, with security agencies also notified to aid investigations and prevent further acts of vandalism along the line route.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Tajudeen Abbas, has urged all relevant government agencies to promptly initiate actions for the full implementation of the Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency Act, 2026, following its signing into law by President Bola Tinubu.
The bill, sponsored by Speaker Abbas, was aimed at repealing the Nigerian Shippers’ Council Act, Cap. N133, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, and establish the Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency to ensure effective economic regulation of Nigerian ports while safeguarding the interests of shippers, service providers, and users of regulated port services. With the President’s assent, it has now been enacted as an Act of Parliament.
The legislation represents one of the landmark achievements of the 10th National Assembly. It reflects the Speaker’s commitment to legislative excellence, institutional reform, and sustainable economic growth, according to a press statement by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Speaker, Mr Musa Krishi.
The bill underwent a rigorous and inclusive legislative process, including extensive stakeholder consultations and a public hearing. It was passed by both Chambers of the National Assembly and subsequently assented to by the President.
The Act provides a robust legal and institutional framework to ensure effective economic regulation of Nigerian ports by fostering transparency, competitiveness, and efficiency in port operations; protecting the rights and interests of shippers, service providers, and other port users; and aligning Nigeria’s port regulatory system with global best practices, thereby enhancing the ease and cost-effectiveness of doing business.
Despite receiving presidential assent, the Act has yet to be fully operationalised.
He warned that any further delay would undermine the legislative intent of the reform, prolong the exposure of port users to arbitrary charges and operational inefficiencies, and deny the nation the anticipated benefits of increased revenue, improved trade facilitation, and stronger investor confidence in the marine and blue economy sector.
The Speaker urged the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, in collaboration with all relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the federal government, to take the necessary administrative, institutional, and financial measures for the prompt implementation of the Act.
He said this should include the formal transition to, as well as operational empowerment of, the Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency to discharge its statutory mandate effectively.
The full implementation of the Act is critical to unlocking the economic potential of Nigeria’s ports, reducing the cost of doing business, strengthening trade competitiveness, and positioning Nigeria as the leading maritime and logistics hub in West and Central Africa.
The statement noted that the Speaker reaffirmed the 10th House’s commitment to exercising the necessary legislative oversight to ensure this landmark legislation, along with others assented to by the President, is fully implemented and achieves its intended goals for the benefit of the Nigerian people.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Federal Ministry of Youth Development (FMYD), through the Nigerian Youth Academy (NiYA), has partnered with Cascador, a Nigeria-focused platform for growth-stage founders, to provide funding and support for the next generation of Nigerian youth entrepreneurs.
The announcement coincides with International Youth Day 2026, whose global theme this year — Different Contexts, Common Aspirations — calls on institutions to close the gap between young people’s circumstances and their opportunities. The pilot is an early step toward NiYA’s broader ambition to train and empower 7 million Nigerian youth within two years.
The NiYA and Cascador Founders Programme will begin with a pilot cohort of 20 early-stage Nigerian youth founders, including entrepreneurs without formal business registration or established financial records.
Over four weeks, participants will undergo intensive training focused on business fundamentals, investment readiness and pitch preparation. At the end of the programme, the eight top-performing founders will receive non-dilutive funding of up to N5 million each from Cascador, alongside an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution to help them structure, manage and scale their businesses.
The funding and support will be presented at a Pitch Day organised by NiYA and the Federal Ministry of Youth Development.
The Minister for Youth Development, Mr s Ayodele Olawande, said the partnership would enable NiYA to move beyond training by helping young people transform ideas into investable businesses and achieve sustainable economic participation through business preparation and access to capital.
“The pilot is deliberately designed to test a model that can go beyond one cohort. If young founders can be identified early, prepared properly, connected to credible capital and supported to build stronger business systems, then access to opportunity becomes less dependent on background or existing networks. That is the larger objective: to build a youth entrepreneurship ecosystem in which readiness, ideas and execution can increasingly determine who gets the opportunity to grow.”
The pilot will run in-person in Abuja with virtual touchpoints and 1:1 mentorship. All 20 graduates retain NiYA alumni status, with priority consideration for future opportunities.
NiYA and FMYD have already shown what real commitment to Nigeria’s youth looks like — the platforms, the reach, the ambition to train millions. What we’re building together now is the missing piece, a practical bridge from the ideation stage to real capital-readiness. When a Ministry so dedicated to its young people asked Cascador to help build that bridge, it was an easy decision,” said Trish Thomas, CEO of Cascador.
Ms Oyin Solebo, COO of Cascador and former Managing Director of the ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator, highlighted the partnership’s impact, saying, “This is what innovative capital deployment looks like: a government building real investment readiness at scale, and a partner meeting that foundational work with non-dilutive funding at exactly the moment it’s needed. Partnerships like this open doors that neither of us could open alone.”
