Olu Samuel, Lokoja

Nigeria’s First Lady, Mrs. Oluremi Tinubu has flagged-off the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI) Economic Empowerment programme for 1,000 women petty traders in Kogi State.

The programme is part of the continued commitment of the President’s wife to driving economic growth towards a better life for families, especially women across the country.

Flagging off the disbursement of the grants in Lokoja on Thursday, the First Lady revealed that a total of N1,850,000,000.00 would be disbursed to the selected 1,000 Kogi women and 36,000 other female petty traders in other states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

Mrs. Tinubu, who was represented by the wife of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hajiya Fatima Tajudeen Abbas, noted that RHI was aware of the challenges faced by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), especially the petty traders who form the backbone of the local economies.

She added that the N50,000 business recapitalization grant would go a long way in strengthening the beneficiaries’ businesses for better profits.

She, however, stressed that these challenges had not deterred the strength of the women in their avowed commitment to contribute to the economy at the grassroots.

Mrs. Tinubu said, “Through the Renewed Hope Initiative Economic Empowerment Programme, we are providing 1,000 pre-selected women petty traders per state with a grant of N50,000 each to recapitalize and grow their businesses.

“The grants provided today are to assist our women petty traders in overcoming some of their business challenges, expand their businesses, create more jobs, and contribute more robustly to our economy.”

The First Lady affirmed that economic empowerment remained a core objective of the Renewed Hope Initiative and that the programme had continued to support the economic reforms of the President Bola Tinubu-led administration.

In his remarks, the Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo, said the Renewed Hope Initiative was built on a strong administrative and economic platform “that is sustainable even after eight years”, describing it as a visionary masterplan to address poverty amongst women.

He commended the First Lady of Nigeria for showing that she was capable of matching words with action by providing a strong platform to address poverty amongst women.

Governor Ododo described the event as significant, noting that the rural women who invested their trust in President Bola Ahmed Tinubu by voting for him in the 2023 general election were on ground to reap the benefit of their trust.

He commended the President for honouring his promise to petty traders, and building an enduring microeconomic foundation to address the concerns of the indigents in the society.

The governor who expressed excitement that Sen. Oluremi Tinubu was helping his administration to fulfill his campaign promises to the people of the state, further pledged his administration’s total support for the Renewed Hope Initiative Economic Empowerment Programme.

He assured that the government would continue to partner with the First Lady of Nigeria through her coordinator and First Lady of Kogi State in her determination to empower women.

He said his administration was unbending in its commitment to women empowerment and inclusion, stressing that it had floated many policies with particular interest in women empowerment in agriculture and politics.

Ododo said, “Politically, we have given more women spaces. In the cabinet, the Secretary to the State Government is a woman. The Commissioner for Innovation, Science and Technology is a woman; the Commissioner for Culture and Tourism is a woman. The Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation is a woman as well as the Commissioner for Women Affairs. The Accountant General of the State is a woman as well as the Special Adviser to the Governor on Drug Abuse as well as the Director General of the Social Investment Agency and many too numerous to mention, including the first female Director General of the Kogi State Broadcasting Corporation.

“At the grassroots level, we have encouraged our party to produce the first ever female Chairmanship candidate of a ruling party. We have also encouraged our Chairmen to pick females as their Vice Chairmanship candidates, except in one Local Government in order to strike a balance. Our party has also ensured that 40% of our Councilorship candidates are also women. That means that if all our candidates are able to win in the free and fair election, we will have the first ever elected Local Government Chairman in our dear state as well as 20 Local Government Council Vice Chairmen as women as well as 96 Councilors as women. This is unprecedented in the political history of Nigeria.”

Earlier in her welcome address, the First Lady of Kogi State, Hajiya Sefinat Usman Ododo, described the programme as a significant stride towards empowering women entrepreneurs and enhancing their economic resilience.

She expressed the hope that the grants would undoubtedly provide the much-needed support in helping women petty traders expand their businesses and improve their livelihoods.

Mrs. Ododo said that by investing in women’s growth, the government was creating opportunities for a brighter future, just as she commended the efforts of the First Lady and her dedicated team in making the initiative a reality.

After receiving the grants, the beneficiaries in Kogi State commended the First Lady of Nigeria and President Tinubu’s Administration for the disbursement.