As the federal government continues to strive towards diversifying the economy, the Equipment Leasing Association of Nigeria (ELAN) has highlighted the opportunities in the leasing sub-sector of the economy.
Chairman, Board of Directors, ELAN, Mr. Chuka Onwuchekwa, stated this in a report obtained by THISDAY on Monday.
Based on the current global economic decline, the Nigerian government and economic watchers have predicted tougher times in 2016.
In reaction to this, the government has put in place policies intended to sustain the stability of the Naira and stimulate local production. Some of the policies include stopping forex allocation to bureau de change, excluding some imported goods and services from access to official forex, among others.
However, the ELAN boss noted that the major policy thrust of government in this crisis, was the diversification of the Nigerian economy from crude oil to other sectors such as agriculture, solid minerals and manufacturing.
According to Onwuchekwa, globally, equipment leasing has been established as a creative financing alternative that facilitates access to capital equipment.
"The whole essence of leasing is to enhance the planning, improvement and development of any economy by building and supporting productive ventures. Since its inception in Nigeria, leasing has been supporting economic development.
"Today, the impact of leasing is pronounced in all sectors of the economy, enhancing capital formation, generating employment and creating wealth. The contribution of leasing in the past 15 years to the economy is over N4.83 trillion and is becoming more relevant in our prevailing situation where access to finance, especially for small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs), is difficult," he added.
He pointed out that as government and businesses continue to feel the crunch of limited funds, it became imperative to seek innovative ways to acquire the capital equipment need to enhance production and achieve the desired economic growth. "One of such ways is leasing, which can facilitate easy and convenient access to the much needed capital equipment in these challenging times. To a large extent, these present opportunities for the leasing industry, as more businesses and institutions turn to leasing to meet their needs," he stressed.
Essentially, leasing is expected to play a major role in the diversification and other developmental agenda of government, he said.
"While the opportunities for the leasing industry are real, it is imperative for the industry to position itself to play actively at these times. The capacity of the industry needs to be strengthened to enable it perform its developmental role effectively," he said.
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