The Aliko Dangote Foundation has allocated ₦10 billion for the empowerment of vulnerable women in the 774 local government.
A statement from the foundation said its chairman Aliko Dangote, gave the figures at the kick off of the empowerment programme at the Justice Idris Legbo Kutigi International Conference Centre in Minna, the Niger State capital.
At the event, the foundation gave out micro-grants to 25,000 disadvantaged women in the state. This brings the total number of women beneficiaries to 256,500 across seven states.
The statement said one thousand women were drawn from each of the Niger State’s 25 local government areas
“The micro-grant programme is one component of the economic empowerment pillar of the foundation. It provides disadvantaged and vulnerable women with a one-off, unconditional ₦10,000 cash transfer to boost their household income generation. This, we believe, will help reduce their vulnerability and meet their livelihood needs,” the statement said.
The foundation explained that the disbursement was started in 2012 with about 256,500 women benefitting from the programme across Kano, Lagos, Jigawa, Kogi, Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States, with a total disbursement of ₦2.565 billion so far.
Dangote noted that he “not only wants to be known as Africa’s richest man, but also as the biggest philanthropist”.
“I will continue to use my resources and my voice to help shape a better Nigeria, and Africa as a whole,” he said.
The foundation’s Executive Director and daughter of its chairman, Hajiya Halima Aliko Dangote, said the foundation was poised to help lift the status of womanhood in the country, adding: “If you empower a woman, you empower the whole nation.”
She stated that women have always borne the brunt of the country’s harsh economic reality and the Aliko Dangote Foundation reasoned that they should be the target of such critical disbursements with the hope that the benefits will cascade down the family line.
Managing Director of the foundation Zouera Yussouffou said the micro grant scheme was part of the four cardinal crust of the foundation, which are: health and nutrition, education, economic empowerment and disaster relief.
She stated that the foundation has been delivering its core mandate across the four cardinal trusts in a strategic manner to ensure its objectives are fully achieved.
Speaker of the Niger State House of Assembly Ahmed Marafa hailed Dangote and urged the beneficiaries to use the grants to transform their lives.
One of the beneficiaries, Rabi Ibrahim, said the grant would enable her to start trading in clothing, soap and perfume. She prayed God to continue to bless the Dangote’s family and his firms.