Olugbenga Ogunbowale is the Co-founder and CEO of Grant Master, foremost grant writing marketplace. In this interview with KINGSLEY ALUMONA, he speaks on why start-ups and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the country struggle to attract grants as well as how small businesses can win grants and thrive in today’s economy.
WHY do SMEs need grants?
AS of today, many well-meaning SMEs are unable to scale their impact because of limited access to funding. According to the World Bank; lack of financial capital is the single biggest challenge facing entrepreneurs in Africa. Loans in Nigeria have interest rates as high as 37 per cent and getting equity investment is difficult to come by, not to mention the gradual loss of ownership. This leaves grants, which do not require repayment or equity.
What challenges do SMEs face in getting grants?
Grant writing is tough. It is technical, time consuming, and extremely competitive. Most grant applicants abandon the grant application, struggle through it, or simply submit somethingand hope for the best. Although grant proposals are different in some way, the approval of a grant depends on the writer’s competence as well as the SME’s competence. Very few SMEs have the technical competence required to put together a winning grant proposal. SMEs want to run their business, not spend days or weeks researching and writing grants. Another challenge SMEs face is finding the grants they qualify for. SMEs do not want to spend donkey hours surfing tons of opportunity websites just to find a grant they qualify for.
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It is a struggle to keep up with many different grant opportunities. How can private businesses like Grant Master help SMEs get grant?
Grant Master connects ambitious organisations in need of grants with vetted expert grant writers. We evaluate the technical competence of each SME to match them with a grant writer fluent in the language of their industry. Asides matching SMEs with writers, we find grants for SMEs for free and share for free, grant opportunities via social media and email newsletters every weekday.
Our work at Grant Master literally transforms people’s lives. Take Nacklyn, a primary school owner, who was hit hard by the COVID-19 lockdown. Her income dried up. She struggled to pay salaries and was weeks away from shutting down her school permanently. She came across a Facebook grant, then heard about Grant Master from a friend. We first paired her with an accountant to get her financials in order, then we matched her with a grant writer. She won the grant, hired back the staff she laid off, and bought new equipment for her school.
This is why we are working hard to connect more Nacklynswith professional grant writers who can give wings to their ideas so they can grow without taking on painful loans or giving up more equity in their businesses.
Grant Master has serviced leading African brands like ROAM Africa, IITA, Gricd, Emergency Response Africa, RCDIJ, Brighter Monday (Uganda and Kenya), Crop2Cash, Money Mie, and Money Africa.
That is quite a client list you have there. So, how can SMEs navigate the current struggling Nigerian economy to scale and grow?
SMEs need to position themselves for funding and learning opportunities. Pivot if the product or service is not working. Ensure that your SME is solving a pressing problem people are willing to pay for. If you have to beg people to buy what you are selling or offering, maybe they do not need it in the first place. Tell your story in a compelling way. Put together a pitch deck or concept note.
Find and apply for funding opportunities by teaming up with a brand like Grant Master and ensure you have common requirements like Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) registration, audited/unaudited financial account, corporate account, website, social media presence, and possibly an annual impact report. There are abundant funding opportunities. SMEs need the right positioning and the right support to scale and to grow.
What do you think the government can do to support or alleviate the pains of Nigerian SMEs?
We need the government to provide an enabling environment. Every entrepreneur in Nigeria is literally a local government. For example, we have a generator at the office but still had to install a solar inverter because power supply is notoriously unreliable. Running on generator all day not only causes noise pollution, but it is also expensive. It is the same story nearly everywhere else. We need better power supply. We need better security. Worsening insecurity across the country actively discourages foreign investors. Government should provide infrastructure and possibly, funding too. SMEs are the heartbeat of this country. The government must provide conditions that help SMEs thrive, and not merely survive.
Tell us about the Grant Master’s Creative Writers Fellowship (CWF).
The 100 per cent online fellowship, fully sponsored by Grant Master, is currently looking for exceptional creative writers all over Africa who want to master grant writing and significantly increase their income by working as grant writers. The fellowship will run from July 4 to August 26, 2022.
Over the course of the 8-weekprogramme, participants will learn the essential skills needed to become exceptional grant writers. Upon successful completion of the fellowship, participants will have the opportunity to work with Grant Master as freelance consultants.
What is the curriculumof the fellowship like and who is eligible to apply for it?
The fellowship will combine workshops with hands-on projects. Topics will cover all areas of grant writing, finding grants, confirming eligibility, creating funding plans, writing what reviewers want to read and fund, creating budgets, designing programmes, and designing evaluation plans.
On eligibility, the fellowship is open to young people between the ages of 18 and 35 years, with exceptional creative writing and research skills, who can read and write in English. Also, the applicants must reside in Africa, and can work and deliver excellently on assignments and projects within tight deadlines.
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