By Alhassan Usman
The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development has flagged -off social empowerment programme to various women groups and people with special need in Bauchi under the second phase of the Federal Government Enterprise Empowerment Programme GEEP 2.0
Speaking at the ceremony, the minister of the ministry Hajiya Sadiya Farouk said the intervention include the distribution of cash grant under marketmoni, tradermoni and famermoni, roll out of utensil for the the National home ground feeding programme, cash grant to the vulnerable.
Others are the boarding of stream II of the independent monitors, conditional cash transfer livelihood grant to household as well as payment of a one grant to IDPs under the Youth Empowerment and Social Support Operation (YESSO).
Hajiya Safiya Sadiya Farouk said beneficiaries who received free non interest loans ranging from fifty thousand to three hundred thousand and are expected to pay back within one year.
She explained that 5,679 benefited from the Cash Grants and charged them to use the funds into profitable small businesses to increase productivity.
The minister also issued employment letters and specialized monitoring devices to 380 Independent Monitors recruited to ensure proper implementation of the programmes.
Hajiya Sadiya Farouk presented fifty thousand naira to each of the 600 Internally Displaced Persons received fifty thousand naira along side Persons with Disabilities and Senior Citizens and flagged off payment of a one-off fifty thousand grant to selected IDPs under the Youth Empowerment and Social Support Operations (YESSO).
While launching the Digitized Cash Transfer payment system for the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) Programme, the minister noted that the exercise is to create reliable, transparent, accountable and accessible database for seamless disbursement to beneficiaries of the scheme.
The empowerment is part of President Buhari’s agenda on the poor which is consistent and deliberate National policy of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years.
Source: Radio Nigeria North East
