Access Bank, a leading commercial bank in Nigeria renowned for its extensive presence across Africa and beyond, has partnered with Solina Centre for International Development and Research (SCIDaR), a prominent non-profit organization spearheading impactful health interventions across Africa to tackle financing challenges faced by over 200,000 health Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria.
This collaboration, anchored by the Promoting Accreditation for Community Health Services (PACS) project, aims to bolster the supply chain, enhance productivity, and fortify the economic resilience of SMEs within the health sector, particularly Community Pharmacists (CPs) and Patent & Proprietary Medicine Vendors (PPMVs) across Nigeria. SCIDaR’s Access to Finance Specialist Mark Akpan noted that through this collaboration, SCIDaR will strengthen the capacity of health SMEs to be investment ready through the provision of technical support services including entrepreneurship and financial management training in addition to business development services for a sustained relationship between the health providers and Access bank.
Through this collaboration, Access Bank and SCIDaR will address the challenges associated with lending to healthcare SMEs, leveraging Access Bank’s tailored financial products and services to enhance their expansion. Among these offerings are products designed to cater to the credit requirements of health SMEs, while the Access Closa product empowers health SMEs to act as bank agents in underserved communities, thereby increasing their income and financial resilience.
At the MoU signing event at SCIDaR’s headquarters in Abuja, Dr. Uchenna Igbokwe, CEO of SCIDaR, said, “Funding is critical for Nigeria’s health system. Insufficient funding has strained our health infrastructure, resulting in subpar performance on health metrics. This partnership with Access Bank is timely as it aligns with the government’s vision for the health sector and has the potential to strengthen health value chains and support our country’s GDP contribution.”
Igbokwe further elaborated on SCIDaR’s increasing focus on access to finance and financial inclusion within the health sector, driven by the significant unmet needs and the pivotal role of finance in achieving universal health coverage in Nigeria. He outlined SCIDaR’s approach, emphasizing six cardinal pillars: Research and iterative analysis, product development/adaptation, smart subsidies, financial literacy, technology integration, and sustainable partnerships. These pillars are aligned with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, and 17, accelerating progress towards universal health coverage and economic development in Nigeria.
Chizoma Okoli, Deputy Managing Director, Access Bank, said “In 2022, we launched a project with the goal of enrolling one in every two Nigerians. It’s audacious and we have attained outstanding results so far. As part of our ongoing mandate, we are committed to providing access to finance for entrepreneurs in the transportation, agriculture, and health sectors this year. In line with this commitment, we have collaborated with SCIDaR to drive inclusion specifically within the health space. This partnership emphasizes our unwavering commitment to fostering financial inclusion and sustainable development across Nigeria.”
Reiterating Chizoma’s comments, Njideka Esomeju, Group Head, Consumer Banking, Access Bank highlighted Access Bank’s dedication to driving inclusion in the health sector stating that the bank stands ready to extend loans to health SMEs, empowering them to expand their businesses and efficiently serve rural communities across Nigeria. This strategy not only promotes increased financial stability but also stimulates economic growth in the health industry.
In her remarks at the MoU signing event at SCIDaR’s headquarters in Abuja, Chizoba Iheme, Group Head, Financial Inclusion, Access Bank, emphasized the bank’s dedication to expanding financial services across Nigeria. She highlighted the strategy to reach all 774 local governments, ensuring even the most remote individuals have access to finance. This endeavor is primarily enabled through the bank’s extensive agency banking network, which serves as the digital platform connecting underserved communities to formal financial services.
“We envision an ecosystem where financial inclusion enhances access to healthcare, ultimately improving the well-being of our communities,” said Chizoba. She further elaborated that harnessing the network of Patent and Proprietary Medicine Vendors (PPMV) as agents will extend financial services to remote areas, thereby ensuring broader financial inclusion and widespread adoption of digital banking and financial services within the healthcare sector.
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