Tinubu’s wife empowers 500 women with N25m grants in Ondo

Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, on Thursday empowered 500 women in Ondo State with ₦50,000 each under the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI) Economic Empowerment Programme, in partnership with the Tony Elumelu Foundation.

The disbursement, held at the International Culture and Event Centre in Akure, forms part of a nationwide scheme to support 18,500 women entrepreneurs with business re-capitalisation grants across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

Represented by the wife of the Ondo State Governor, Mrs Oluwaseun Aiyedatiwa, the First Lady explained that the Ondo State event followed the symbolic launch of the programme in Niger State, where 50 women received grants.

Her words: “This Economic Empowerment Programme is about supporting the entrepreneurial spirit of our women traders and small-scale business owners who wake up each day determined to provide for their families, educate their children, and uplift their communities.

“Let me emphasize that this is not a loan. It is a grant and a seed of renewed hope to help you re-capitalize your existing businesses. It is my firm believe that when you empower a woman, you empower a household, a community, and indeed, a nation.”

She expressed appreciation to the Tony Elumelu Foundation for donating ₦1 billion to the RHI, enabling 500 women in each state and the FCT to receive ₦50,000 each to boost their small businesses.

She also thanked Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa and his wife for their support in implementing RHI programmes in the state.

ALSO READ: VIDEO: Claims of Tinubu ‘Yorubanizing’ Nigeria not true — Daniel Bwala

“I thank the Tony Elumelu Foundation, who donated One Billion Naira to the Renewed Hope Initiative, to directly support 18,500 women across the Nation.

“Five hundred women from each of the 36 states and the FCT will be receiving N50,000 each to strengthen and re-capitalize their existing small businesses.”

In her remarks, the Ondo State Commissioner for Women Affairs, Dr Seun Osamaye, who urged beneficiaries to make good use of the funds, promised to monitor them across the 18 council areas of the state to ensure they use the grants judiciously.

Osamaye, who is the Renewed Hope Initiative coordinator in the state, said: “It is not a loan but a seed grant from the Renewed Hope Initiative. We’ve never had this opportunity.

“This is happening to women under the leadership of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa and our mothers Mrs. Oluremi Tinubu and Esther Aiyedatiwa. We are immensely grateful for this gesture.”

Some of the recipients expressed gratitude to the First Lady and the Governor’s wife, promising to invest the funds to expand their businesses and improve their livelihoods.

ALSO READ TOP STORIES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE