The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has opened applications for the 2025 SMEDAN Pitch Competition, a flagship initiative aimed at empowering innovative entrepreneurs and strengthening the country’s MSME ecosystem. The competition will award ₦20 million in grants to five outstanding entrepreneurs whose businesses demonstrate innovation, resilience, and sustainable growth.
Organized as part of this year’s National MSME Conference, the competition provides a unique platform for small business owners to showcase their ideas before a national audience of investors, innovators, and policymakers. Ten finalists will be selected and treated to an all-expense-paid trip to Lagos State, where they will pitch their ideas live for a chance to win from the ₦20 million grant pool.
Applicants are required to submit a one- to two-minute video introducing their business, describing the problem their product or service solves, and explaining how it aligns with the 2025 conference theme, “Building a Future of Innovation, Resilience, and Prosperity.”
Through this initiative, SMEDAN aims to highlight and support the next generation of Nigerian entrepreneurs driving economic inclusion, job creation, and sustainable enterprise development across the country.
Entries close on October 28, 2025. Interested entrepreneurs can apply via smedan.gov.ng/msmeconference and join the conversation on social media using the hashtags #SMEDANPitchCompetition, #MSMEConference25, and #GrowNigerian.
