LSETF disburses ₦15bn to 20,000 businesses, creates 320,000 jobs
By Adeola Ogunrinde
The Lagos State Government has disclosed that more than ₦15 billion has been disbursed to over 20,000 micro, small and medium-scale enterprises through the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), resulting in the creation of more than 320,000 direct and indirect jobs across the state over the past 10 years.
The Executive Secretary of LSETF, Feyisayo Alayande, made the disclosure on Monday during a media parley in Ikeja, where she presented the agency’s decade-long impact report and highlighted its contributions to employment generation, entrepreneurship and wealth creation.
Alayande said the fund, established in 2016 to address unemployment and support enterprise development, has evolved into a key vehicle for economic empowerment by providing access to finance, capacity building, market opportunities and technology support for Lagos residents.
According to her, the agency has also helped preserve more than 173,000 jobs that could have been lost, while over 82,000 business owners have benefited from training and capacity-building programmes aimed at improving productivity, competitiveness and sustainability.
She further revealed that more than 30,000 young people have been trained and linked to employment opportunities through various LSETF interventions. In the technology sector, she said the Lagos Innovates initiative has supported over 1,200 startups and helped develop more than 3,300 technology talents.
Alayande described the achievements as proof that strategic investments in entrepreneurship and human capital development can deliver tangible economic outcomes. “Over the past decade, we have disbursed more than ₦15 billion through over 20,000 loans to micro, small and medium enterprises. We have created over 320,000 jobs and preserved another 173,000 jobs that could have been lost,” she said.
The Executive Secretary also highlighted the agency’s loan recovery performance, revealing that beneficiaries have maintained a repayment rate of 94.53 per cent. She noted that limited access to finance, training, markets and professional networks remains a major challenge for many entrepreneurs and job seekers despite the abundance of talent across the state.
Looking ahead, Alayande said LSETF plans to expand its interventions by providing more funding to growing businesses, increasing youth-focused skills programmes and deepening support for technology-driven enterprises. She also announced that the Lagos Employment Summit 4.0 will hold in the fourth quarter of 2026, bringing together government agencies, private sector stakeholders, development partners and civil society organisations to explore new strategies for job creation and enterprise development in Lagos.
