As Nigerians strive daily to rise above the economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, the federal government has introduced a new initiative to lend a helping hand, particularly to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
The initiative tagged MSME Survival Fund was set up by the President Muhammadu-Buhari-led administration to support businesses that have been hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
It targets saving N500,000 worth vulnerable MSMEs across the country. It started officially on Monday, September 21, with the launching of the registration portal.
Registration for the Payroll Support Scheme has commenced.
— MSME Survival Fund (@SurvivalFund_ng) September 21, 2020
Log on to https://t.co/v3iJMdsHCV to register.#SurvivalFundNG pic.twitter.com/ACIj81SL41
This piece will walk you through the four simple steps to apply for the interventionist fund. However, before getting to the registration page, you need to take the two steps listed below:
1. Log on to http://www.survivalfundapplication.com
2. On the website’s homepage, click on the “Start Here” at the upper right-hand side to see the categories of support available for application: MSME Payroll Support, MSME Grant, and Guaranteed Offtake.
MSME Payroll Support
This category makes payroll support available to save jobs and sustain local production in the country. It is meant for business owners who have not been able to pay their staff salary for the past three months.
The salary support ranges between N30,000 and N50,000.
MSME Grant
Under this category, the federal government will provide credit support to MSMEs and key sectors impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic with the aim of enabling an increase in manufacturing capacity. However, this scheme is not currently active, at the time of this report, according to the information on the website.
Guaranteed Offtake
The MSME Guaranteed Offtake Scheme is also one of the federal government’s economic support measures to assist micro and small businesses affected by the pandemic.
This is also not currently active, at the time of this report.
500,000 vulnerable MSMEs will be supported in meeting their payroll obligations of between N30,000 to N50,000 per employee to safeguard the jobs of a maximum of 10 employees over a 3-month period.#SurvivalFundNG pic.twitter.com/C9lzUO4Ggv
— MSME Survival Fund (@SurvivalFund_ng) September 16, 2020
How to Register for the MSME Payroll Support in Four Steps
Step 1: Personal registration
Register your personal details to start the payroll support application. These include first and last name, email, phone number, password, gender, date of birth, residential address, state of origin and local government. Afterwards, accept the Terms and Conditions and register.
Instructions at the top of the form will guide you on the required fields that need to be filled to complete the initial registration.
Step 2: Activate your account
After completing step 1 above, you will receive an activation code on the phone number/email address used for registration. Ensure you used a valid email/phone number as the code will be used to activate your account.
Step 3: Organisation registration
After you have successfully activated your account, you will need to login and register your organisation.
To complete this stage, you will need your CAC Number, SMEDAN Number, Tax ID (optional) and the organisation’s bank account details.
Step 4: Completing the payroll support application
You will receive an email on the list of requirements needed to complete the application. These include the beneficiary employees details (not more than 10 employees), proof of previous salary payments to the beneficiary and all other supporting documents.
Registration timetable
Business owners in the educational sector are expected to start their registration from Monday, September 21. Business owners in the hospitality sector e.g. cinemas, bars, hotels, restaurants etc are expected to register by 12am on Friday, September 25.
Registration for the Payroll Support Scheme for the MSME Survival Fund commences at 10pm on the 21st of September 2020.#SurvivalFundNG pic.twitter.com/PDQMKTqxw1
— MSME Survival Fund (@SurvivalFund_ng) September 20, 2020
Every business owner is expected to register from Monday, September 28, while the registration for all sectors will close on Thursday, October 15.
