By Victor Nwegede
The First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has begun the disbursement of over 1.8 billion Naira recapitalization grants to 37,000 female petty traders across the nation.
The recapitalization grant is the Renewed Hope Initiative Economic Empowerment programme for 1,000 women petty traders in each of the 36 states and Federal Capital Territory Abuja.
Flagging off the disbursement of the fund on Thursday at Abakaliki,
Senator Tinubu, represented by the Ebonyi First Lady, Chief Mrs Uzoamka Mary-Maudline Nwifuru, said each of the 1,000 women petty traders in the state would be given 50,000 Naira as a grant to support her business and better life in her family.
She disclosed that a total of
1,850, 000, 000 Naira was released for the empowerment of the 37,000 women petty traders across the nation to encourage them in their businesses, saying the programme was going on simultaneously in the 36 states in the country.
"I am honoured today for the empowerment programme of 1,000 women petty traders across the nation to drive the economy towards a better life for a family. This event is taking place simultaneously across the 36 states of the Federation and the federal capital territory.
"We are aware of the challenges facing Small and Medium Enterprises owners, especially the petty traders who are the backbone of our local economy; however, we commend them for remaining resilient towards building a better life in their families.
"This initiative programme is for the empowerment of women; we are selecting 1,000 beneficiaries per state with a capital of 50,000 Naira for each to do their business. A total of 1,850 million Naira will be disbursed to 37,000 women petty traders across the nation. The disbursement of the fund is to encourage women petty traders to overcome some of their business challenges and to contribute more towards economic growth and development," she said.
The First Lady described economic empowerment as the core objective of the Renewed Hope Initiative Agenda of President Bola Tinubu-led administration and urged massive support for the restoration of the national economy.
She acknowledged that empowering women is not just morally commendable but a strategic means of strengthening economic development, saying when women thrive, the families thrive, and, by extension, the community, as well as the entire, can thrive.
She charged the coordinators of the empowerment programme from various geopolitical zones and first ladies of the 36 states in the country to contribute their best towards the success of the disbursement thereby identifying the petty traders to be real beneficiaries.
While emphasizing the need to promote the local economy through business owners, she urged the women petty traders to continue to show resilience in building their businesses with the future spirit of hard work and determination.
In her remarks, the Ebonyi First Lady, Chief Mrs Mary-Maudline Uzoamka Nwifuru, represented by the State Commissioner for Women and Social Development, Barrister Felicia Nwamkpuma, poured encomiums on President Tinubu's wife, noting that the empowerment would be of great impact to business development and economic emancipation in the state and country in general, especially at the grassroots level.
In their goodwill messages, various women representatives including the member representing Ebonyi North State Constituency, Chief Mrs Chinyere Nwogbaga, State Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Mrs Chinwe Okah and her counterpart of the Agriculture and Natural Resources, Princess Nkechinyere Iyoku, commended Senator Oluremi Tinubu for disbursement of the empowerment fund and advised the beneficiaries to utilize it to better their lives. They equally commended Governor Nwifuru's wife for her empowerment programmes through her petty foundation, Better Health for Rural Women, Children and Internally Displaced Persons and other humanitarian interventions, with her husband in the state.
