SAN FRANCISCO, November 05, (THEWILL) – The Ayodele Fayose Administration in Ekiti State said on Wednesday that as part of its poverty reduction programme, 2,108 women in the state will benefit from the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) scheme, under which the beneficiaries will receive N5,000 stipend per month and N100,000 as exit fund to enable them invest after the expiration of the programme.
The Conditional Cash Transfer scheme, which is an initiative of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Ekiti State Government, is aimed at reducing poverty at the grassroot level.
Governor Fayose’s Special Assistant on Information and Civic Orientation, Hon. Lanre Ogunsuyi, who made this known in a statement, said 421 households are to be selected in the five local councils selected for the programme. He listed the benefitting Local Government Areas as Gbonyin, Emure, Ijero, Oye and Moba, adding that each of the beneficiaries would receive the sum of N5,000 on a monthly basis for a period of one year and will be trained on agric related business before the end of the programme.
The statement said: “N100,000 will be provided for each of the beneficiaries to enable them invest in agric related business as part of the Poverty Reduction Accelerator Investment (PRAI).
“Beneficiaries will also be provided with a mobile phone and SIM card to enable them receive their monthly allowance through E-wallet programme on the phone.”
While enumerating the objectives of the CCT, Ogunsuyi said the programme was aimed at enabling children of school age to attain basic education, pregnant women to attend ante – natal care at Basic Health Care and Primary Health Care, eradicating extreme poverty among the poor households in the state and empowering beneficiaries through investment in small agric – related ventures.
While describing the programme as one of the key components of the Governor Fayose administration’s Stomach Infrastructure policy, the statement added that other intervention programmes will be vigorously pursued by the government so as to make life more meaningful for the people.
