FG empowers women group to boost SMEs

In line with the Federal Government’s Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) initiative to encourage the development of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), in other to enable them attain financial prosperity, 1, 250 women have been trained as beneficiaries of soft loan.

To this end, non-interest soft loan of between N10, 000 and N100, 000 will be disbursed to the women wing of the National Association of Nigeria Traders (NANTS).

The loan, which is payable within six months, is apart from boosting of their businesses, also meant to encourage women, who constitutes 65 per cent of the
association’s membership in their small scale businesses to contribute their quota to the country’s economic revival.

Speaking at the capacity building session in Abuja, president of the NANT, Ken Ukaoha, warned the beneficiaries not to see the largesse as a national cake, rather they should make accountability and prudence their watchwords.

His words, “The money is a micro-credit for six months and the capacity building is for you to know the objective of the fund, how to access it and use it effectively in order to add value to your lives and the economy at large.

He said the association will continue to screen and enrol members into the scheme, adding that though the loan does not attract any interest, the association on its own has put in place an internal mechanism to checkmate defaulting tendencies.

Leader of the group, Rose Agbo, described the intervention as God sent.  The Bank of Industry (BoI) will be responsible for the screening of beneficiaries, while the fund will be disbursed through commercial banks.