UBA underscores support for SMEs, maintains headline sponsorship of 2022 Lagos International Trade Fair

Africa’s global bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, has reiterated the importance it places on supporting the growth of Small and Medium Scale businesses as the bank once again becomes the headline sponsor of the 2022 edition of the Lagos International Trade Fair (LITF).

UBA has since 2019 been the headline sponsor for this all-important event, and this year’s edition which is the 36th edition, holding at the Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos, between November 4 and 13, 2022, is also being headlined by the bank.

Speaking at the opening ceremony on Friday, the Deputy Managing Director, UBA, Mr Muyiwa Akinyemi, said the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (LCCI) focus on creating value and connecting businesses resonates so much with United Bank for Africa’s mission to create value for all its stakeholders and facilitate businesses across Africa, and between Africa and the rest of the world.

He said the bank would continue to drive the exposure of SMEs to digital sales outlets in Nigeria and across Africa through the UBA marketplace as well as continue to enhance the capital of SMEs and commercial businesses in Nigeria and across Africa through innovative products like SME Working Capital Loan while also equipping them through training and advisory services.

According to him, UBA’s relationship with LITF dates back to 1977 from the inception of the fair which has been growing in scope and influence over the last four and half decades.

Akinyemi added that UBA has always participated in the LITF based on its alignment with the bank’s vision of promoting intra-African trade convenience.

“The bank however, took the step to deepen its level of participation in 2019 by becoming the lead sponsorship partner and we have continued as the lead sponsor year-on-year ever since and we hope to continue the mutually beneficial relationship into the future.

“We are poised to continue to lead in the facilitation of cross-border trade and economic integration and development across Africa through the following; providing flexible export financing scheme to aid export of Nigerian products and commodities; commitment to the Affirmative Finance Action for Women (AFAWA) to improve women SMEs’ access to finance in Nigeria and across Africa,” Akinyemi stated.

Earlier, UBA’s Head of Retail, Digital and Transaction Banking, Sampson Aneke, said,  “In line with UBA’s unflinching support to the growth of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), the bank will be giving special incentives to businesses who register to attend the fair.”

Aneke, who expressed excitement at the partnership, noted that the bank, with its extensive spread across Africa and other major economies of the world, was always on the lookout for partnership opportunities that would benefit the business environment and the economies where it operates.

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The Director-General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dr Chinyere Alumona, commended UBA for the collaboration with LCCI on the event, pointing out that the bank has consistently remained a dependable partner since 2019 and there were great expectations that this year’s edition would equally yield great benefits like the previous ones owing to the fact that the LITF hosts an average of 2,000 exhibitors annually, with over 200 foreign exhibitors from 16 countries.

UBA Plc is a leading Pan-African financial institution offering banking services to more than 25 million customers, across 1,000 business offices and customer touch points in 20 African countries.

With presence in New York, London, Paris, and Dubai, UBA is connecting people and businesses across Africa through retail, commercial and corporate banking, innovative cross-border payments and remittances, trade finance and ancillary banking services.