The Kaduna State government has commenced the disbursement of N50,000 each to over 15,000 women and People With Disabilities (PWDs) who have opened bank accounts, as grants to support their businesses.
State Commissioner for Human Services and Social Development, Hajiya Rabi Salisu, announced this during a one-day citizens engagement workshop on the Domestication of the WEE Policy in Kaduna State, organized by the Development Research and Projects Centre (dRPC).
Hajiya Rabi Salisu emphasized the state’s commitment to investing in women and girls through various economic development, education, agriculture, and entrepreneurship initiatives. “Over 15,000 women in Kaduna have been financially included. They own their accounts to become financially independent and included in the global digital system,” she stated.
She also noted that the state government has registered over 20,000 women for the School Feeding Programme of both Federal and Kaduna State feeding programs. “The WEE Policy is a significant opportunity for Kaduna State women. In the first 100 days of Senator Uba Sani’s administration, over 5,000 women have been empowered through digitization and agriculture, among other initiatives,” she added.
The Commissioner commended the dRPC for supporting the state in domesticating the policy, highlighting that Kaduna would be the first state to launch and domesticate the WEE Policy for the benefit of women statewide. She also mentioned the Kaduna State Women Empowered Programme (KADSWEP) 1.0 and 2.0 as pilot programs for women’s empowerment, with KADSWEP 3.0 in the pipeline.
Despite these initiatives, she acknowledged that over 80% of women who benefited from KADSWEP loans had not repaid the money, posing a challenge for the government in providing further soft loans. However, the government has allocated about 200 million naira in the budget to reassure that women are serious about going into business and complying with agreements.
Hajiya Rabi Salisu revealed that the government has sent messages to all women who benefited from KADSWEP 1.0 and 2.0, requesting they return the loans to enable other women to benefit.
Dr. Judith-Ann Walker, Executive Director of the dRPC, represented by the Director of Partnerships and Communications, Malam Hassan Aliyu Karofi, explained that the workshop aimed to support women’s inclusion in Kaduna State. He noted that 24 more states are earmarked to be supported in domesticating the policy, with potential economic gains of over $2.5 billion.
Dr. Judith Walker pointed out that, with over 50% of citizens as women, Kaduna state stands to gain immensely from empowered women. Mrs. Rimicit Aboki, Gender Lead at the Albright Stonebridge Group, encouraged subnational governments to explore the value of implementing the policy for women’s economic empowerment.
World Bank representative Mr. Musa Yusuf praised the Kaduna state government for adopting the policy, assuring that the Bank will provide technical assistance to support its domestication for the citizens’ benefit.
The workshop included representatives from civil society, traditional and religious leaders, women-led organizations, the private sector, and various government ministries, departments, and parastatals in Kaduna State.
