By Agba Jalingo
ABUJA (CONVERSEER) – Entries for the Senator John Owan-Enoh MSME Support Programme have swelled over 12,000. This demonstrates not just acceptance but also exposes the yawning desire for a helping hand by Cross Riverians.
I am also sure that many Cross Riverians are already wondering how the beneficiaries will be selected from such a massive pool. Many who think some privileged assessors will grab their pens to tick as many names off and plant their favoured winners, have been calling, chatting and texting to lobby, to no avail. But I want to give you an idea of the painstaking work that is ongoing behind the scenes by the team that is assessing the entries.
Stage One: CATEGORISATION
The entries are all being categorised into 14 different sectors, namely: Agriculture, Construction, Creative Arts, Education, Energy, Fashion Designing, Financial Services, Healthcare, Hospitality, Manufacturing, Retail, ICT, Transportation, and Others. All these 14 sectors have their drop-down sub-sectors.
Stage Two: ELIGIBILITY SCREENING
This involves a general assessment using simple Yes/No responses. Any application that receives five (5) or more “No” responses will be automatically disqualified.
Applications with more “Yes” responses will advance to the next stage.
Some of the queries include:
1. Residency / Location: Is the applicant or business based in Cross River State?
☐ Yes ☐ No
2. MSME Definition:
Does the business qualify as a micro, small, or medium enterprise (not a large enterprise)?
☐ Yes ☐ No
3. Sector Fit:
Does the business fall within target sectors (trade, industry, services, artisanship, agriculture, etc.)?
☐ Yes ☐ No
4. Business Status:
Is the business operational or is the business idea viable?
☐ Yes ☐ No
5. Documentation:
Has the applicant provided at least one proof of business (CAC registration, tax ID, cooperative membership, trade association ID, or any verifiable evidence)?
☐ Yes ☐ No
6. Application Completeness:
Is the application form properly completed (all required fields answered, supporting documents attached)?
☐ Yes ☐ No
7. Previous Support:
Has the applicant declared that they are not currently benefitting from another government MSME grant/loan that would make them ineligible for this fund?
☐ Yes ☐ No
This stage is expected to reduce the number of entries to a manageable size of 3000-4000.
Stage Three: APPRAISAL TEMPLATE
This is the stage that involves the detailed scoring of each application. Applications are evaluated using the full scoring template. A 75% score serves as the cut-off mark for consideration.
Each panel member independently scores the applications assigned to them, and to ensure fairness and transparency, 15%–20% of each panellist’s assessment is randomly reassigned to another panellist for re-evaluation.
This process helps us maintain integrity, fairness, and objectivity, ultimately leading to a near-perfect selection outcome.
Some of the appraisal queries include:
Business viability and feasibility, assess operations, and sustainability
(0-20).
Clarity of concept, defined problem, feasibility, job creation and employment potential (0-15).
Current and future staff, realistic market potential and growth prospects (0-15).
Actual market performance, market research, identified customers, demand validation, financial management and sustainability (0-15).
Cost structure, revenue model, funding strategy, social impact and inclusiveness (0-10).
Intended or actual community/social benefits, innovation and creativity (0-10).
Stronger emphasis for new business ideas: novelty, originality, problem-solving approach alignment with Owan Enoh MSME Fund objectives (0-10).
CAC, Tax, NAFDAC, proposed business name readiness. Documentation and compliance (0-5)
Total score, out of 100, will determine the final recommendation.
Assessors have been duly briefed on prioritising gender inclusion and urban-rural balance in the final selection to ensure a fair spread between Calabar, other urban centres, and rural LGAs.
Note again that no beneficiary in the formal sector will be given any cash. Whatever the applicants stated as the needs of their business will be procured and supplied to them. The same applies to the informal sector, unless successful applicants who deal in perishable wares.
