First Lady Disburses N250m to Empower 500 Women in Bauchi
The First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has disbursed a grant of N250 million to empower 500 women in Bauchi State under the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI) Economic Empowerment Programme.
Each beneficiary received N50,000 to either start or expand their businesses, with the initiative aimed at boosting women’s social and economic well-being. The programme is being implemented in partnership with the Tony Elumelu Foundation.
Mrs. Tinubu, represented by Aisha Mohammed, wife of the Bauchi State Governor, inaugurated the exercise on Saturday. She explained that the empowerment programme targets 18,500 women across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
“This is not a loan but a seed grant to support the entrepreneurial spirit of women traders and small-scale business owners who work daily to provide for their families and uplift their communities.
When you empower a woman, you empower a household, a community, and a nation,” she said.
The First Lady also applauded the Tony Elumelu Foundation for its N1 billion donation to the RHI and commended the Bauchi State Government for its support. She added that beneficiaries would be monitored to ensure the funds are put to effective use.
In her remarks, Aisha Mohammed disclosed that the Bauchi State Government has equally launched an empowerment initiative to support pastoral households. Under the scheme, 25 women’s groups will benefit, with 21 groups receiving N300,000 each (totalling N6.3 million), alongside 125 bags of rice distributed across the state’s 20 local government areas.
Zainab Baban Takko, Commissioner for Women Affairs, urged beneficiaries to prudently invest the funds to grow their businesses. Similarly, Mrs. Zainab Ibrahim, representing the Tony Elumelu Foundation, reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to improving livelihoods across Africa.
Expressing her gratitude, one of the beneficiaries, Maryam Sani, described the grant as a timely intervention that would help women expand their businesses and improve the welfare of their families.
