The Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) has initiated a survey to determine access to the COVID-19 support fund instituted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The Director of ACCI Policy Advocacy Centre, Mr Olawale Rasheed, disclosed this on Monday in Abuja in a statement signed by Mr Gena Lubem, ACCI Media and Strategy Officer. The N100 billion CBN Support Fund was announced before the two-week lockdown.
Rasheed said that the survey, which targets members of chambers of commerce across the country, has eight questions with a response time of less than five minutes.
He said that the initiative was designed to provide real time data on access to financial support for businesses during the coronavirus meltdown.
“Government has good intention, but it is our duty as a business chamber to assess how accessible the facilities are for our members. The survey will provide data on how easy it is to meet the conditionalities as well as the extent of success in terms of beneficiaries.
“We will prepare a report which will also help the apex bank to review certain practices for better results,”Rasheed said.
Meanwhile, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has discredited false reports in the social media circles that loan seekers and owners of small-scale businesses who apply for loans provided to cushion the effects of COVID-19 are required to pay a certain amount as application processing fee.