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| Raising capital through empowerment programmes |
In Nigeria today, the majority of the people live in rural areas. Of this number, it is estimated that women and children constitute over 60 per cent.
The country’s unemployment rate currently stands at 19.7 per cent. According to figures from the National Bureau of Statistics, the rate of unemployment is highest in the 15-24 age group, representing 41.6 per cent and it is 17 per cent in the 25-44 age bracket.
Given this statistics and in view of the disparities in social infrastructure between urban and rural areas, the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Zainab Maina says that “one may conclude that rural people are the worst hit by poverty as they suffer the jeopardy of lacking access to education, good health care, safe water and sanitation.”
She says that since the Beijing declaration, the Federal Government has developed economic empowerment programmes to attract economic transformation that would be beneficial to the society, particularly the poor.
The goal, according to her, is to make many people, particularly the poor, to have access to critical resources and that investment in human capital development is made as a means of reducing poverty in the country.
She, however, points out that one of the easiest ways of reducing poverty is through empowerment programmes.
Empowerment programmes are schemes targeted at individual entrepreneurs or/and groups with the aim of providing funds and business development facilities to aid business growth.
For instance, the minister says that the establishment of the women’s fund for economic empowerment, in collaboration with the Bank of Industry or Agriculture, has assisted no fewer than 3,000 persons to become entrepreneurs.
The success of that programme, she says, has prompted organisations and groups to see the scheme as a better way of setting up aspiring entrepreneurs.
She explains, “Working with the Bank of Industry or Agriculture, we have established the Business Development Fund. This is another funding window targeted at individual entrepreneurs with the aim of providing funds and business development facilities to aid the growth business activities at micro, small medium and large scale levels.
“Furthermore, a number of cottage industries and skills acquisition centres are also being established by the ministry across the federation to complement these bold steps taken by government on job creation.
“On completion, they will be used by women and youths in the states where they are established.”
To also complement the government’s efforts to reducing poverty, Unilever Nigeria Plc has begun the empowerment of entrepreneurs through capital provision.
The programme, according to the Managing Director of the company, Mr. Thabo Mabe, is aimed at training and equipping women with retailing skills so that they are well prepared for retail business undertakings.
He notes that no fewer than 1000 people would be trained in the first phase of the programme.
He says that already, a total of 100 women had been successfully trained, adding that in the coming weeks, more people would benefit from the scheme.
Mabe explains that the participants in the first phase are selected from Kogi, Nassarawa, Niger, Benue and Abuja, adding that these entrepreneurs would be trained on basic requirements for a successful business; principles of basic book-keeping; basic retailing skills for fast moving consumer goods, communication, and decision making in business.
These topics, he notes, will equip them for the task of operating retail business of consumer goods, adding that no special criteria is needed to become a beneficiary in the programme.
On other benefits of the scheme, he says, “We are starting up each of the trained 100 women with empowerment kiosks and grant of N25, 000.
According to him, the start-up capital is a seed fund that the company is contributing to ensure a successful take-off of the business.
“We believe that with the skill training and the other supports Unilever is offering, this first set of 100 women will make a success of this programme and also good role models in their communities,” he says.
Mabe notes that the company has invested about N40m into the empowerment programme, adding that the scheme is in line with the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals for the continent.
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