Dangote empowers 65,500 women, youths in Adamawa

The Dangote Foundation has extended its grassroots poverty alleviation scheme to Adamawa and Yobe states with the disbursement of the sum of N655 million to 65, 000 vulnerable women and youths in the two states.

The disbursement is a continuation of its award of special grants to states aimed at alleviating poverty by empowering the grassroots dwellers financially so as to lift their economy.

In Adamawa, the Dangote Foundation distributed grants amounting to N315 million to women and youths numbering 31, 500 across the 21 local government areas of the state, while 34, 000 people benefited from the disbursement in Yobe State.

It would be recalled that the chairman of the Foundation, Aliko Dangote had expressed concern over widespread poverty among the people, especially the youth and the women at the grassroots and promised that his organisation would institute a scheme that would help in addressing the menace.

Consequently, the Foundation came up with a micro grant scheme aimed at empowering the grassroots dwellers with funds to help them undertake petty trading which will help in reducing youth unrest and other social vices among the women.

Already, women and youths in states such Kano, Bauchi, Kaduna, Kogi and Gombe have benefited from the scheme that is expected to move round all the 774 local government areas across the nation.

In Kano women especially widows in each of the 44 local government in the state shared N600 million through a multi-purpose vehicle created by the state government to ensure smooth disbursement to the qualified women.

Also in Jigawa State, where verification of the deserving women is ongoing in the 27 local government areas, Dangote has earmarked N270 million to help lift the economic condition of women, most of whom bear the brunt of the economic downturn and are the closest to the family.

In Adamawa, no less than 21, 000 women in the 21 local government areas benefited from the largesse while 5,250 female youths and another 5, 250 male youths were given a grant of N10, 000 each.

The programme, according to Dangote is to cover at least 1000 women in each of the 774 local governments in a bid to assist the federal government in the onerous task of poverty reduction by equipping the vulnerable women with some money to help them start a trade to improve family life.