A former Commissioner for Works in the old Rivers State, Arc Harcourt Adukeh, has challenged business operators in Bayelsa State to develop capacity to utilize business opportunities in the state.
Adukeh, who was the keynote speaker at the 11th Wider Perspectives Limited 2026 Annual Small and Medium Enterprises Conference in Yenagoa, said the problem of Bayelsa State was not about opportunities or resources.
There are abundant opportunities and resources, he declared. But the real challenge was having the capacity to harness those resources and make use of the opportunities. Adukeh was represented by Arc Ebibose Ayibakeme.
He pointed out that Bayesla State is uniquely blessed with agriculture, oil and gas, waterways, tourism and a young population. Those resources would remain potential if there was no capacity to harness them.
The theme of the conference was, “Harnessing Economic and Investment Opportunities Through SMEs.” It was organized by Wider Perspectives Limited in collaboration with Bayelsa State Government.
Key speakers at the conference included Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Peter Akpe, Mr. Ebiere Jones, the Bayelsa State Commissioner for Trade, Industry and Investments, Mr. Tarinyu Benwari, the Acting MD of Wider Perspectives and Chief Jones Akenge, the President of Yenagoa Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture.
The Director General of the BRACED Commission, Dr. Joe Keshi, said the future of business development in Bayesla State should be defined with the capacity and willingness to develop, and not by the size of the business.
“We must move from raw material to creating value. We must build businesses that will survive us and grow beyond oil and gas. We have to connect our capacity to the opportunities, and build businesses that can compete globally,” he said.
The Founder of the AfCFTA Roundtable, Mr. Jones Warmate, called for the use of technology to grow businesses, and for states and local government to prioritise small and medium enterprises.
He urged the BAAR (Bayelsa, Abia, Akwa Ibom and Rivers) States to invest in agriculture, manufacturing, energy, logistics, digital economy and tourism.
The Acting Managing Director of Wider Perspectives Limited, Mr. Tarinyu Benwari, said the SMEs Conference is one of Wider Perspectives Limited flagship initiatives borne out of the need to support Micro, Small and medium Enterprises and drive economic development.
He noted that 80 to 95 percent of SMEs fail within their first five years in Nigeria. Some of the reasons for their failures, he said were that they build products or services customers do not actually need and therefore had a challenge of entering into the market.
Others he said are poor cash flow management, and lack of capital, inflation, infrastructure deficits and lack of structure.
“Many micro-businesses operate as a one-person show without scalable systems, proper financial records, or formal business management skills. Bridging the gap has driven our commitment to the SME Conferences which creates an avenue for Business Linkages and interaction between all stakeholders in SME ecosystem,” Mr. Benwari said.
He said the SME Conference is held annually in the four states of Bayelsa, Abia, Akwa Ibom and Rivers States (BAAR State) to ensure that the business community can maximize opportunities through the conference.
“We believe that there are strong potentials that need to be commercialized to stimulate economic development in the country,” he added.
Core objectives of the conference include showcasing investment opportunities, maximizing business opportunities, connecting SMEs to large buyers, creating jobs and exploring export opportunities.
Benwari said the confenrence over the years had built the capacity of over 5,383 owners and managers of MSMEs and facilitated over 390 MSMEs access to market, and provided support for over 180 MSMEs that have accessed funding up to N224 million through Southeast Enterprise Development Centre (SEEDC) Graduate Revolving Scheme, Rivers State Micro Finance Agency (RIMA), CBN AGSMEIS programme and other Intervention funds.
