IN an effort to boost economic development in the state, Bauchi State Government has inaugurated a 13-man Committee to manage the disbursement of interest-free loans of the sum of N1 billion to traders across the 20 local government area of the state.
While inaugurating the committee on Wednesday at the Government House, the State Governor, Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar charged members of the Committee to discharge their responsibilities judiciously by ensuring that the loans were disbursed to all the beneficiaries in the state.
He said that the disbursement of the loans was timely, considering the efforts of the present administration in its fight against poverty, youth restiveness, unemployment and hunger eradication.
The Governor stated that “in realisation of the weak financial position of our businessmen in the state, the present administration decided to support the business communities in the state with access to interest-free loans for equitable, objective and useful disbursement to the beneficiaries across the twenty local government areas across the state”
“In this light, the government decided to set up a committee that is saddled with the responsibility of implementing and articulating the criteria of selecting the potential beneficiaries of the loans, void of sentiments”, he said.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Bauchi Traders and Marketers Association, Alhaji Umar Azare commended the government for providing the loan with zero interest for businessmen in the state, assuring that the loans will be paid as agreed.
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In his response, the Chairman of the Committee, Alhaji Ado Yakubu Wanka, thanked the government for finding them worthy of carrying out the task of disbursing the loans, saying that they will justify the confidence reposed on them by the government.
Meanwhile, the Bauchi State Government has commenced the distribution of relief materials to victims of the windstorm that affected some parts of Bauchi metropolis during last year’s rainy season.
The distribution exercise was kickstarted at Danke ward in Bauchi local government area where the Committee in charge of the distribution had earlier met with District, Village and Ward Heads to intimate them on the modalities of the distribution.
While speaking on Wednesday during the distribution exercise, the Chairman of the Committee and commissioner of Religious Affairs and Community Relations, Ado Sarkin Aska said that already, some sub-committees have been constituted at the ward levels to ensure even and successful distribution of the relief materials.
He explained that “these relief materials are for the victims of the windstorm disaster that wrecked havoc in some parts of the state metropolis during last rainy season. The sub-committees at ward levels were constituted earlier before now to ensure that no victim of the windstorm is left out in the distribution”
Ado Sarkin Aska then declared, I “We will also ensure that the distribution is transparent and nobody will tamper with any of the items. The distribution should have come earlier than now, but we had to put all the modalities in place to ensure the success of the exercise”.
Items distributed included building materials, foodstuff, clothing, household utensils amongst others.
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