FG restates commitment to food security, growth of MSEs

Story from Usman IBRAHIM, Yola

The Federal Government (FG) said on Friday that it was determined to maintain food security and facilitate the growth of Medium and Small Enterprises (MSEs) in the country.

Prince Clem Agba, Minister of State for Budget and National Planning said this in Yola during a ministerial town hall meeting on the Nigeria COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES) programme.

The meeting attracted participants from Adamawa and Taraba.

The minister, who was represented by Mr Aso Vakporaye, Chairman Federal Technical Committee, NG-CARES, said the programme was one of the policy options to impact no fewer than 2 million direct beneficiaries.

“One of President Buhari’s strategies is to intermittently meet with, and engage stakeholders as part of government’s accountability to the citizens.

“The purpose basically is to hear first-hand views of our people on government policies and programmes and to feel the pulse of the nation”, he said.

He said the government had taken efforts to scale up its programme under the social protection agenda and to respond to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The Federal Government accessed a World Bank concessional loan in the sum of US$750 million on behalf of the 36 states and FCT.

“It is meant to stimulate the local economy and increase households’ consumption among the poor and vulnerable segment of the society”, he said.

In his own speech, Vakporaye expressed gratitude to the Federal Government for the programme.

Vakporaye, whose speech was read by Abubakar Bisala, Head Financial Management, Federal CARE Support Unit acknowledged support from some state governors that released funds to support the programme.

In his remarks, Yusuf Audu, Chairman Community and Social Development Agency (CSDA), Adamawa, said the programme had yielded positive results in some communities in the state.

He said the programme had impacted the communities in the form of the provision of quality drinking water, road, education, health services, and electricity.

A beneficiary, Altine Abdulkarim, 62, a female farmer from Yola-North Local Government, said she harvested 25 bags of rice and paid her children’s school fees from the gains she made from the programme.

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