By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The free education resources platform created by Visa for small businesses and entrepreneurs called Practical Business Skills has been expanded.
The Practical Business Skills is built on Visa’s global expertise in financial education and offers growth-minded entrepreneurs tools to help start, manage and expand a business.
The platform gives SMBs access to a video library with lessons and to resources businesses can easily download and customise, such as calculators to manage cash flows or determine the cost-benefits of a taking a loan.
With more than 50 online learning modules, the platform addresses the needs at various stages of the business lifecycles like starting a business, managing a business, and tactics on how to drive businesses into a more profitable long-term success.
In a statement made available to Business Post, Visa explained that it expanded the Practical Business Skills platform to support business owners in the midst of the current economic crisis that has impacted millions of small business owners worldwide.
It noted that it expects the resources to provide the needed tools to aid in keeping their businesses afloat and to identify opportunities for potential growth amidst the situation.
“SMBs are the backbone of our economy. It is crucial to empower SMB-owners with knowledge, skills, and access to services that support them in rebuilding -or starting- stronger, digitally-enabled businesses,” the Vice President and Country Manager of Visa West Africa, Ms Kemi Okusanya, explained.
She further said, “Practical Business Skills is part of Visa’s commitment to providing resources and knowledge to help drive inclusive, sustainable and equitable economic growth for entrepreneurs, businesses and communities here in Nigeria and around the world.”
SMBs account for more than 90 per cent of global businesses and are the source of 50 per cent to 60 per cent of global employment.
With the one-year mark of the COVID-19 pandemic approaching, the SMB community needs support to continue adapting, as their contribution to their communities and the global economy cannot be overstated.
