Women empowerment: Gov. el-Rufai approves N200m for beneficiaries

In bid to support women at the grassroots in their entrepreneurial activities, Gov. Nasir el-Rufai has approved N200m fund for the Kaduna State Women Empowered Programme (KADSWEP).
The Commissioner for Human Services and Social Development, Kaduna State, Hajiya Hafsat Baba, made this known in a chart with the newsmen.
According to her, the programme which was established in 2017, was specifically designed to improve financial inclusion and provide women access to low-interest loans to begin new or expand existing business.
Baba explained that the ministry was working on the guidelines and modalities for the disbursement of the money to new beneficiaries.
She also added that the state was working with the Central Bank of Nigeria to deepen financial inclusion among women, adding that about 14,000 women have recently opened bank accounts.
The women will be thoroughly screened to ensure that only new beneficiaries access the money”, she said.
“We will use Bank Verification Number to screen existing beneficiaries out so that others can benefit,” she said.
The commissioner stated that over 7,000 women benefited from the programme in 2019, noting that individual received N20,000 while association of 10 members got N200,000.
She said that the ministry was working with some beneficiaries to pay back the soft loan to provide opportunities for others to benefit, while others have paid back.