Kwara state government is set to empower 100,000 beneficiaries, including artisans and farmers through Government Guarantee Support Scheme (GGSS).
The General Manager, Kwara State Social Investment Programme (KWASSIP), Muhammad Brimah, disclosed this at an interactive session with artisans and small-scale business owners in Ilorin on Friday.
Brimah said the scheme is an expansion of the state social investment programme to assist owners of micro businesses, including artisans and small-scale farmers.
He said this is being done in partnership with the Governor’s Office on Poverty Alleviation.
Brimah said the scheme will be in phases, starting with the enumeration of all artisan groups to ascertain who are qualified to receive the government’s support.
“We target an estimated 100,000 beneficiaries in phases for the Government Guarantee Support Scheme (GGSS).
“The first step would be to enumerate the artisans working with various associations and groups across the state,” he said.
“The Scheme has been introduced by His Excellency under KWASSIP and in partnership with the Office on Poverty Alleviation to assist all sectors of micro businesses, including artisans, enterprising youths, small-scale farmers and women.
“The support will come either in form of cash grants or inputs like equipment, tools or raw materials.”
Brimah recalled that over 40,000 petty traders have so far benefitted from various tranches of the social investment programme since its inception in 2020.
The event was well attended by various dignitaries, including the Special Assistant to the Governor on Women Empowerment, Bolanle Ismail, Senior Special Assistant on Youth Engagement, Kaosara Adeyi, and Chairman of KWASSIP Board, Abdullateef Oloyin.
Oloyin, speaking for the board, said the interactive session was called to harvest views and requests of the artisan groups, which, according to him, would guide the Board’s planning and decisions on the new scheme.
He hailed the government for giving the Board an opportunity to relate with the people with a view to taking care of their business needs, commending Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, for putting smile on the faces of people from Kwara, irrespective of their affiliations.
President Artisans Congress, Kwara state branch, Adeshina Jimoh, said they are in support of the enumeration exercise and appreciated the Governor for being passionate about the welfare of artisans in the state.
He said the Congress has no less than 87 affiliate associations and unions from across the 16 local government areas, requesting the government to do more for their members.
Adeshina said the artisan congress has benefitted a lot from this government and will be willing to reciprocate the government’s kind gesture at the appropriate time.
Some of the participants who spoke at the stakeholders’ meeting took turns to eulogise Gov. AbdulRazaq for giving artisans a sense of belonging and for the administration’s various empowerment programmes targeted at the poor.
