Idris Ahmed
11 February 2008
To economically empowered women in the country, the federal Government is granting N162 million loan facilities to women under its Women's Fund for Economic Empowerment (WOFEE), Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development has said yes.
Hajia Saudatu Bungudu said already 27 states in the federation have benefitted from the programme to the tune of N6 million each.
She made the disclosure at a function organised by the Bank of Industry in conjunction with the ministry of Women Affair titled: "Women and Access to Business Capital and sub-titled Mitigating the Gender Gaps in Nigeria's Emerging Market."
She said: "The Women's Fund for Economic Empowerment (WOFEE) is a revolving loan facility which targets women cooperatives in the rural areas. It is being implemented in partnership with the National Agricultural Cooperative and Rural development Bank (NACRDB), with the State Governments providing counterpart funds to expand the scheme."
She said government has decided to encourage women entrepreneurship development by opening more access to them in terms of soft loans, technical support and market network.
Federal government, according to the minster is also implementing Business Development Fund for Women (BUDFOW) to encourage them further in entrepreneurship development.
She said: "The programme is designed to reduce to the minimum the stringent requirements of conventional financial institutions that exclude women from assessing bank loans. Currently, we have received over 1,000 applications from women entrepreneurs for the BUDFOW facilities, which are being screened prior to loan disbursement.
"The BUDFOW is a soft loan scheme that targets women entrepreneurs in all the states. It commenced in 2006 under a Memorandum of Understanding signed with the Bank of Industry, which serves as the ministry's technical partner on the programme."
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Bank of Industry (BOI), Ms. Evelyn Oputu, stated at event that the bank has established a gender desk to provide assistance to women entrepreneurs.
She called on states in the country to pay their counterpart funding aimed at empowering women, saying women are the best manager of the economy if given the change, "Women are highly talented, which should be directed to positive economic activities. It must be stated that women have good debt service records and have to be treated equally.
"What the women need is to become economically emancipated and strong. The Bank of Industry is committed to the cause of women," she said.
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