Nigeria’s Social Investment Micro-Credit Programme

In consolidation of the Buhari Presidency’s Social Investment Programmes (SIPs), the Federal Government has so far disbursed 23,400 loans to beneficiaries in 13 states & Federal Capital Territory under the Government’s Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP).

The States are Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Ekiti, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, Lagos, Osun and Ogun. Others are Oyo, Ondo, Rivers and the FCT.

The Micro-credit scheme is a no-interest loan scheme, with only a one-time 5% administrative fee for costs. The loan is targeted at micro-enterprises: traders, artisans, market men and women, entrepreneurs, farmers with the involvement of cooperatives and executed through the Bank of Industry, BOI.

Although over 23,000 people have benefited from the loans, altogether, over 1 million people have already enrolled for the programme across the country and are expected to benefit this year.

To facilitate the loan disbursement, four payment providers have been signed-on for the programme mostly in the urban areas. The next wave of payment providers, coming on stream by March 2017, would provide a much wider coverage in the rural areas.

Equally, about 8,436 market associations and cooperatives nationwide have been registered for this scheme through the web portal (www.boi.ng/market), as well as through paper application forms.

The loans range from N10,000, to N100,000 per applicant. While the loans would be paid directly to individuals, they are expected to belong to registered associations and/or cooperatives as the case may be, to ensure that they are peer-endorsed as credible, and to facilitate timely repayments. All beneficiaries must have BVNs and bank accounts.

Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant on Media & Publicity to the President
Office of the Vice President
January 30, 2017

Source: Aso Rock Villa

Nigeria Signs the AU Niamey Convention on Cross-Border Cooperation

Nigeria has signed the AU – African Union Niamey Convention on Cross-Border Cooperation at the ongoing 28th African Union Summit in Addis Ababa. Nigeria is the 12th country to sign the AU Niamey Convention on Cross-Border Cooperation.

Niamey convention

The Niamey Convention, which was adopted on 27 June, 2014 aim to achieve the following objectives:

  1. Promote cross-border cooperation, at local, sub-regional and regional levels;
  2. Seize the opportunities arising from shared borders and address the related challenges;
  3. Facilitate the delimitation, demarcation and reaffirmation of interstate borders, in conformity with mechanisms agreed upon by the parties concerned;
  4. Facilitate the peaceful resolution of border disputes;
  5. Ensure efficient and effective integrated border management;
  6. Transform border areas into catalysts for growth, socio-economic and political integration of the continent; and
  7. Promote peace and stability through the prevention of conflicts, the integration of the continent and the deepening of its unity.

Uyo Emerges 2016 Coca-Cola ‘Shaping a Better Future Grant Challenge’ Winner

Uyo

Coca-Cola Company celebrates Uyo, Nigeria as a 2016 winner of the Coca-Cola Shaping a Better Future Grant Challenge, a competition that awards acceleration funding to sustain and expand initiatives led by members of the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers Community.

 The Uyo Hub of the Global Shapers Community will receive a $10,000 grant for their project, “Education for Sustainable Development”. Their funding from Coca-Cola will accelerate the project’s work to build libraries and educational infrastructure for underprivileged students in Nigeria. Through this project, the Global Shapers seeks to correct the negative educational impact on students caused by dilapidated school buildings, overcrowded classrooms, inadequate instruction, insufficient teacher training, and a shortage of textbooks.  To date, the “Education for Sustainable Development” project has increased access to educational materials, resources and facilities for nearly 24,000 students in Nigeria. With their funding from The Coca-Cola Company, the Global Shapers will build three additional libraries.