Jesufemi Adeogun, CEO of New Chip Technology Limited, has issued a sharp critique of current economic policies, arguing that they fail to address the core infrastructural challenges that are systematically eroding the profitability of Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria.
Adeogun emphasized that in major economic hubs like Ikeja Computer Village and Alaba International Market, the lack of reliable public infrastructure forces business owners to shoulder massive, hidden operational costs.
The Power and Telecom Drain
The most damaging challenges cited are the chronic failures in power and telecommunications:
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Power Crisis: Business owners are forced to rely on expensive diesel generators, which dramatically inflates operating costs and consumes profits meant for growth. Adeogun noted the potential health hazards of this reliance as well.
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Telecom Unreliability: Even basic services like mobile network connectivity are unreliable in clusters that collectively generate billions of dollars per day. This lack of service results in wasted time and money, further frustrating business operations.
Adeogun urged the government to adopt practical measures to prioritize and protect these local business hubs by:
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Subsidizing infrastructure in major clusters.
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Reinforcing the areas with reliable telecommunications systems.
Ignorance and Tax Penalties
While praising the government for granting tax reliefs to small businesses, Adeogun issued a crucial warning regarding compliance ignorance:
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Reporting Mandate: Many SMEs are unaware that, despite receiving tax reliefs, the law still requires them to file monthly tax reports.
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Negligence Under Law: He cautioned that entrepreneurs may miss out on the intended benefits and expose themselves to penalties simply due to this ignorance, emphasizing the legal principle: “There is no negligence under the law.”
The plea is for policies to move beyond abstract incentives and address the fundamental operational realities, enabling SMEs to grow their profits instead of watching them dissipate into fuel and connectivity costs.
