Enugu State Government has approved N500 million to the state COVID-19 Action Recovery Economic Stimulus Programme for Resolve team to help cushion the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on the citizens.
This was made known by the Commissioner for Finance and Economic Development, Mrs Adaonah Kene-Uyanwune, while briefing newsmen at the end of the team’s meeting with the Deputy Governor, Mrs Cecilia Ezeilo, at the Government House, Enugu.
Uyanwune, who led the team, said that the N500 million is for the first phase of the programme.
She said that the team called ”COVID-19 Action Recovery Economic Stimulus Programme for Resolve”, is an Economic Responsive Stimulus for result.
The chairman noted that the programme is a World Bank assisted programme designed to help Nigeria States to recover from the COVID-19 effect.
” World Bank, in its magnanimity, created platforms to intervene in helping the state government to overcome the impact of COVID-19.
” We the Enugu State Team after our lateral discussion with the coordinators of the cash team on different programmes that would be best suited to Enugu State.
” After the discussions, we arrived at two different areas to help every Nigeria state in terms of cash transfer, Agricultural sector and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).
” This is to help support the livelihood of the citizens and this first trench is to help in Agricultural sector and the MSME” she said.
She said that N57m input has been set aside for farmers and that the team is concentration on the state area of comparative advantage which is rice and cassava.
” We have come up with the full data of farmers in the state through the registered farmers, corporative farmers.
” This should not discourage individual farmers that are corporative not as they are also entitled to gain in the programme, ” she said.
She advised such farmers to register with the Liaising Agricultural officer in their Local Government Area of the State.
” As for the rice input, we are going to concentrate on the Local Government Areas that have comparative advantage in rice farming.
” For the cassava, we are looking at a value chain creation in the state because most people are used to cassava planting for consumption.
” We are at commercial cassava agriculture, that is why the government wants to spend the resources not.
” In the programme, we are going to educate the youths and farmers on the programme and after which, help them to get off taker, ” she said.
Uyanwune said, ” when we come to MSME, we will start job creation with soft loans to help the poor and the vulnerable ones”.
She advised “youths to go and register in the MSME programme to become a beneficiary.”
Members of the team present at the meeting includes, Commissioner for Budget and Planing, Dr. David Ogbuta, Commissioner for works and infrastructures, Mr Greg Nnaji, among others.
