NOT fewer than 18000 women drawn from the North-East region of the country have been trained and empowered with the provision of soft loans for takeoff by a Bauchi based NGO, Rahama Women Development Programme in its quest to make them employers of labour and self-reliant.
This was disclosed by the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the NGO, Mallam Mohammed Inuwa Bello during the inauguration of the Board of Trustees of Rahama in Bauchi.
He explained that the disbursements of loans of various amounts to the beneficiaries were preceded by series of training on financial management in order to equip the women with the basic skills required in running businesses at the grassroots level.
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“We trained over 15 thousand women in Bauchi, Alkaleri, Tafawabalewa, Katagum, Darazo, Zaki, Dass, Misau and Bogoro LGAS in Bauchi state while we equally extended similar support to about three thousand women in neighbouring Adamawa, Gombe and Plateau state in the past 6 years”, Inuwa Bello added.
According to him, all the beneficiaries of the Rahama loan scheme acquired skills in trades such as sewing, Knitting, spaghetti making and production of local packaged food and were later supported with machines for their businesses.
Also speaking, the Executive Director of Rahama Women Development , Mrs Miriam Iliya said under the health component of the NGO, a total of 480 Community Based Health volunteers (CBHVs)were trained to carry out household counselling on family planning, reproductive health as well as maternal and neonatal child health care in Alkaleri, Kirfi and Itas/Gadau LGAs of Bauchi state.
Miriam Iliya added that “With funding from USAID/TShip Project, the CBHVS were trained on basic knowledge of care for pregnant women, recognition of danger signs, birth preparedness, prevention of Malaria in pregnancy as well as prevention and treatment of basic household illnesses”.
On the menace of HIV/AIDS, Miriam Iliya disclosed that the NGO has paid school fees for 104 children for one year and provided them with scholastic materials just as it equally carried out malaria test and deworming exercise for 96 other vulnerable children.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the newly inaugurated Board of Trustees, Chief Abdon Dala Gin who is also the immediate past Head of Civil Service of Bauchi State , expressed satisfaction with the laudable objectives of Rahama Women Development Programme which focused on the vulnerable group including women and children.
Abdon Gin then hailed Rahama for providing services to humanity assuring that the Board of Trustees which he heads will add value to the activities of the NGO in Bauchi state and beyond.
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