President Muhammadu Buhari has announced the government is set to launch a N1.6 billion National Women’s Empowerment Fund to assist in rehabilitating the economies of rural communities, especially those impacted by insurgency and conflict.
The President, who made the announcement during his Democracy Day broadcast, Sunday morning, also said the official launch of the social protection programmes for which half a trillion had been budgeted for in the 2016 spending plan.
“I would like to take this opportunity to express my appreciation for the increasing role that our women are playing in revitalising the agricultural sector. Modern farming is still hard and heavy work, and I salute our Nigerian women in sharing this burden.
“In this respect, I am very pleased to announce that the government will shortly be launching the national women’s empowerment fund, which I have approved to provide N1.6 billion in micro-finance loans to women across the nation to assist in rehabilitating the economies of rural communities, particularly those impacted by the insurgency and conflict,” the President said.
He officially announced the launch of what he term “by far the most ambitious social protection programme in our history,” a programme he said both seek to start the process of lifting many from poverty and at the same time create the opportunity for people to fend for themselves.
“In this regard, N500 billion has been appropriated in the 2016 budget for social intervention programmes in five key areas. We are committed to providing job creation opportunities for five hundred thousand teachers and one hundred thousand artisans across the nation. 5.5 million children are to be provided with nutritious meals through our school-feeding programme to improve learning outcomes, as well as enrolment and completion rates.”
On the Niger Delta, the President said his administration was committed to implementing the United Nations Environment Programme report and was advancing clean-up operations as well as taking a sustainable approach to address issues affecting the delta communities.
He reaffirmed the government’s commitment to rescuing the missing Chibok schoolgirls, saying, “We will never stop until we bring them home safely. As I said before, no girl should be put through the brutality of forced marriage and every Nigerian girl has the right to an education and a life choice.”
