Emmanuel Ukumba in Lafia
The federal government under its Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) yesterday commenced the disbursement of 300 million loan facility to about 30,000 beneficiaries in Nasarawa State.
The disbursement exercise which took place at the Lafia Ultra-modern Market was expected to last for five days and is part of the Federal Government Social Investment Programme which is aimed at assisting small scale business entrepreneurs.
Speaking to journalists shortly after the commencement of the loan disbursement exercise, the project officer of the GEEP, Mrs. Chinyere Okoracha, said they were in Lafia for market activation for traders money in order to disburse the monies and as well sensitise people of the state about the programme.
She explained: “We have been to 15 states of the federation around the country, and today is scheduled for Nasarawa. We are going to activate about 11,000 beneficiaries for today, however 30,000 beneficiaries would be captured at the end of the exercise in Nasarawa State.”
The project officer continued that each of the 30,000 beneficiaries was expected to access the sum of N10,000 which will be repayable within a duration of six months.
In an interview with some of the beneficiaries, Mrs. Gloria Ogbona, commended the federal government foresight in assisting the petty traders in the state and appealed for the sustainability of the social investment programme.
She however, called on other tiers of government to emulate the central government’s idea of empowering the less privilege members of the society.
In the same vain, a 400 level student of the Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Mr. Ahmed Adamu Zanuwa, thanked the federal government for coming to the aid of the petty traders in the state as according to him, “the loan facility will leverage the less privileged in the society.”
