Vice President Kashim Shettima has called for a conducive business environment that enables Nigerian women to thrive, saying the country owes them an economy that recognises and rewards their contributions.
VP Shettima stated this on Sunday in Katsina State when he flagged off the Community Investment Fund (CIF) disbursement in a major push for women empowerment and financial inclusion under the Nigeria for Women Programme Scale-Up (NFWP-SU) Project at Muhammadu Dikko Stadium, Katsina.
VP Shettima noted that women should be given more space for their ambition to flourish unlike in the past when they carried heavy responsibilities with limited resources for their businesses to thrive.
He also inaugurated 32 compressed natural gas-powered buses and 200 electric-powered tricycles under the Katsina State Comprehensive Urban Renewal Programme as well as several completed road projects undertaken to improve traffic flow, connectivity and urban mobility in state metropolis.
The CIF fund disbursement, he said, “answers a question that should trouble every government as it borders on how much prosperity has been postponed by asking women to work miracles with too little capital.”
He said that “over 40,000 women in Katsina are eligible to receive business capital after fulfilling the prescribed eligibility conditions and demonstrating satisfactory performance in their savings and group activities.”
“Our daughters should inherit their mothers’ determination without inheriting every obstacle their mothers endured. That is another reason to make this programme succeed. The girl who watches a business grow in her own household learns that skill can yield an income, and that ambition can survive contact with adversity.
“We owe these women an economy worthy of their labour. They have carried heavy responsibilities with limited means; their ambition should now have more room to flourish. With confidence in their abilities, I hereby flag off the Community Investment Fund disbursement under the Nigeria for Women Programme Scale-Up Project in Katsina State. May Almighty Allah bless their efforts and grant our country enduring prosperity,” he said.
Reforms
The Vice President maintained that the economic reforms of administration of President Bola Tinubu must translate into stronger businesses, greater purchasing power, and an improved quality of life for Nigerians.
His words: “For the administration of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, economic reform must find expression in the earning capacity of citizens. We must connect national policy to the circumstances of the trader, the producer and the service provider.
“Our task is to make their effort more rewarding, so that the pursuit of national growth becomes intelligible in the accounts of an ordinary household.”
VP Shettima applauded Governor Dikko Radda’s sensitivity to what he described as an “economic necessity that reaches beyond the loudest voices,” noting that the Governor’s “attention to women and vulnerable households honours an essential duty of leadership: to hear those whose difficulties seldom command a microphone.”
On the CIF design, VP Shettima said it is an empowerment programme for which training is required, explaining that “money needs knowledge and organisation to produce lasting results.”
“To the women participating, your savings have spoken for you. Every contribution made despite competing demands records a decision to prepare for tomorrow. Preserve that discipline as your businesses grow. Keep sound records, weigh your purchases carefully and protect the trust within your groups. The habits that qualified you for this investment will matter even more when larger sums pass through your hands,” he said.
The Vice President implored those administering the fund to ensure that eligibility remains the “basis of access, without favouritism or political interference,” pointing out that beneficiaries should understand what they receive and how the process works, while each transaction are properly documented.
Commitment
Katsina State Governor, Dikko Radda, said the state government has committed an additional N4 billion to the implementation of the Nigeria for Women Programme Scale-Up, bringing the state’s total financial commitment to the programme to N8 billion.
Governor Radda noted that the flag-off of the programme was expanding economic opportunities for women across the state with the ultimate objective of improving their livelihoods.
He applauded the participation of women living with hearing impairment, particularly the formation of affinity groups to enhance inclusion and describing it as one of the most encouraging developments under the programme.
World Bank’s Country Director for Nigeria, Mr Matthew Verghis, said Nigerian women are already making significant contributions across various sectors of the economy and noted that closing gender gaps would require deliberate action.
He commended the Nigerian and Katsina State Governments for identifying the economic needs of women and choosing to address them through empowerment initiatives.
He also called on the private sector, community leaders and traditional institutions to support efforts aimed at expanding economic opportunities for women across the state.
Gas Project
Earlier, Vice President Shettima inaugurated 32 compressed natural gas-powered buses and 200 electric-powered tricycles under the Katsina State Comprehensive Urban Renewal Programme.
The VP also inaugurated several completed road projects undertaken to improve traffic flow, connectivity and urban mobility in Katsina metropolis.
He also witnessed the reception of prominent political decampees into the All Progressives Congress, APC led by former Secretary to the Katsina State Government, Dr Mustapha Inuwa and other stalwarts including 8 National Assembly aspirants, 18 State House of Assembly aspirants and several political leaders from opposition parties.
