In a major boost to Nigeria’s digital economy, global technology company Zoho has partnered with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) to provide ₦20 billion in wallet credits to 250,000 local businesses.
Zoho believes that MSMEs are fundamental to Nigeria’s economic development, but technology can only deliver its full potential when businesses are able to access and effectively use it.
“Through this partnership with SMEDAN, we are reducing the access barrier to adopting world-class business technology while providing businesses with the training, consultation and support they need to leverage cloud technology to streamline their operations, and catapult their growth,” Kehinde Ogundare, Country Head, Zoho Nigeria
Also commenting, Director General/CEO of SMEDAN, Charles Odii noted that the focus of SMEDAN is to ensure that small businesses are able to move from survival to growth and prosperity. “That means helping entrepreneurs formalise, improve productivity, reach new markets and build businesses that can compete. Digital capability is now an important part of that journey, and this partnership with Zoho gives thousands of MSMEs within our ecosystem another practical pathway to strengthen how they operate and grow,” he said.
Key Highlights of the Strategic Partnership
- Up to 25,000 eligible MSMEs will receive wallet credits from an aggregate ₦20 billion pool to access Zoho’s software suite.
- The initiative directly supports SMEDAN’s GROW Nigerian strategy and its ongoing collaboration with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) to offer free business registration to 250,000 MSMEs, helping them enter the formal economy.
- Beneficiaries can deploy credits across Zoho’s enterprise tools, including Zoho Workplace (collaboration suite), Bigin by Zoho CRM (customer management), and Zoho Books (cloud accounting).
- Beyond software credits, Zoho will deliver ongoing technical support, training workshops, and one-on-one business consultations to ensure effective digital adoption.
By combining SMEDAN’s nationwide reach with Zoho’s transnational localism model, the initiative aims to lower the entry barrier for small businesses to modernize their operations and drive long-term resilience across Nigeria’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.