President of Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), Prince Adetokunbo Kayode, has called for funding tactics that will improve the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) where women are playing key roles.

He made the call in Abuja on Thursday on the occasion of the 2018 International Women’s Day celebration. Prince Kayode in a message made available to newsmen by the Media and Protocol Officer of the Chamber, Mr. Lubem Gena, appreciated the role of women in the development of nations and economies across the globe pointing out that many of them have broken all barriers and reached the pinnacle of success in every aspect of life.

He noted that funding the SMEs will go a long way in stimulating women’s productivity.

His words: “Today is a special day for all of us to recognise and appreciate the vital roles women have played either individually or collectively in building homes, communities, economies and to showcase the great efforts they have invested in paving way for others. Continued silence about the critical and positive role women play in the society is no longer golden.

“For us at the ACCI, today is a day that calls for another deep reflection on the way and manner women in business have been affected. One of such areas in which women have played key roles is in the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), which as we all know is still struggling to overcome some basic challenges.

“I therefore call on the appropriate authorities to adopt better tactics to ensure better funding of SMEs where women are actively playing roles that is helping to advance our economy of Nigeria. To this end, we prefer a situation where the Organised Private Sector (OPS) will be given the opportunity to guarantee or securitise funding for members than going through the rigorous processes in commercial banks which have proven, over the years, not to be structured to handle such critical roles.”

While calling for concerted efforts to achieve full gender equality for women across the globe, the President insisted that it is of immense importance to galvanise actions that will account for the advancement of women.