Youth empowerment initiative by the Challenge Fund for Youth Employment (CFYE), which is jointly sponsored by Crust Microfinance Bank, Thrive Agric and Trace Nigeria have provided POS terminals and loans to youths and women in Plateau State .
This was done in order to boost business and entrepreneurship skills among them.
The beneficiaries comprises of 300 women and youths from 10 communities and across four local government areas of the state.
The beneficiaries are also entitled to a loan of N100,000 minimum and up to N500,000 to support the business, which will also be registered and with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).
Concept note of the initiative said it promotes the inclusion of women and youth, recognizing their vital role in driving employment opportunities and economic growth in Nigeria and Africa
The beneficiaries can take on roles as agro commodity agents, POS agents, and more, with a focus on skill development to thrive in agriculture and financial services.
In her remarks at a town hall meeting with the women and youths, the Project Lead, Barrister Khadija Mohammad Abdulhameed explained that the project is aimed at empowering youths and women within the ages of 18 – 35, and the project is currently being implemented in 10 communities across four local government areas of Plateau State.
“The 10 communities are Heipang, Gyel, Dadinkowa, Tudun-Wada, Dung, Gengere, Haske, Kampala, among others, and the local government areas are Jos North, Jos South, Jos East and Barkin Ladi.
“The aim of the project is to address the gender gap that exist among the women and the youth between 18 – 35 years old, which hinders them from accessing employment opportunities.
“Our partners that are sponsoring this project are companies that use innovative solutions. Like the cross Microfinance Bank offer financial services.
“They will distribute POS terminals to the beneficiaries and then register their companies with Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). The youths and women will pay 50% of the registration and the bank will pay the remaining 50%.
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“The bank is also willing to give them loans, minimum of N100,000 – N500,000. The youths and women for this project are 300, and they are selected from across the 10 communities and four local government areas,” she said.
She adviced the beneficiaries that when they finally begin to operate the POS, they should try as much as they can to judiciously utilize the funds they received and do their business effectively.
On his part, the Assistant Team Lead of the Project, Zeenret Zamani, said the project will among other things raise abiding awareness on the need for youths and women to embrace entrepreneurship that will lead to sustainable economic development.
He called on the government to design a policy framework/document that will favor women and youth to take up entrepreneurship for their vitamins and that of the entire nation.
He pointed out that one of the implementing partners of the project which is the Thrive Agric are already changing the face of agricultural practices in the country and other African countries, and they will empower the youth of this project accordingly.
He said this is in addition to the business empowerment program which the crust microfinance bank is already undertaking in the grassroots in Plateau State, which we go a long way in empowering the woman and the youths.
In his presentation, one of the resource persons Dr. Reuel Dakung said it is important to empower the youths because statistics have shown that youths constitute about 70% of the nations population, while for women, he said that women are also very pivotal in the society and if you build a woman you build a nation.
Dr. Dakung who is also from the Department of Business Administration in University of Jos, noted therefore that the empowerment of the women as well as the youth and their blend is key to the economic development of the nation.
He said over the years, the youth and the women have been relegated to the background, that is why when one check the poverty index in the nation he discovered that the number of women and youths are on the high side, even in the rural areas.
According to him, statistics has also shown that about 120 million of the youth in the country are Elder underemployed or unemployed and that is a disaster for the nation, because that is what fuels you youth restiveness, crimes and criminality.
“So this programme is apt because it provides a strategy on how the youth can be empowered, one of which is how to train them and develop their skills and secondly is on how they can partner with organizations and we have given name a number of outlets that they can partner with, depending on your area of business.
“Another area is the issue of mentorship because in every sphere of life there people that have gone ahead, and such people are supposed to mentor the upcoming ones. And then there is the issue of how they can manage their finances which is financial inclusion, financial literacy, financial intelligence and financial discipline.
“So if our youth and women are able to kill into all of these, they will surely succeed. And with respect to Plateau State, there are different areas of business opportunities, weather in the area of agriculture, and other areas which I know of they tap into it they will become great,” he said.
