Business

Women Groups Hail RUFIN’s Empowerment Initiative

Published

9 years ago

June 16, 2017

Some women groups which benefitted from the Rural Finance Institution Programme (RUFIN), say the programme has particularly empowered women economically.
The beneficiary groups from Agbowa-Ikosi, Ejirin and Mutaku communities in Epe local government area of Lagos State commended RUFIN for improving the lot of women and households in the neighbourhood.
Representatives of the women groups told The Tide source in Agbowa-Ikosi recently that the programme had made women to become more relevant in their various households.
Mrs Bridget Okute, President, God’s Time Cooperative Society, said that since the women now had a stable source of income, their husbands had been showing more respect for them.
She said that members of her group were now able to feed their families and take care of other domestic tasks, adding that they also garnered more respect from their husbands.
”Our husbands do not chastise us again because we now assist them financially; unlike before when we had to wait for them before we could meet most of our financial obligations.
”RUFIN has helped us; for instance, in the cooperative society which I coordinate, we, the members, are now more dignified; we are now able to expand our farms and grow varieties of crops; we are even employers of labour,’’ she said.
Okute said that the members of the cooperative society were now more educated on how to save money, accumulate funds and access credit facilities.
”In my group, we have been able to manage our internal funds judiciously; we also have links with micro-finance banks, where we can access loans within a short period.
”Some of the micro-finance banks give us loans at 2.2 per cent rate and have even increased our borrowing capacity from N30, 000 to N100, 000 to N300, 000 at the same percentage.
”I am glad to tell you that we are now financially independent; we give internal loans to our members and even run a group credit account,’’ she said.
Also speaking, Mrs Ronke Sherumukuma, a member of the group, said that she only had a smattering knowledge of cassava farming until she attended a RUFIN capacity-building workshop.
”During the workshop, there were practical and participatory presentations on cassava and maize farming as well as piggery; thereafter, we were linked to micro-finance banks.
”I was given a N30,000 loan, with a three-month moratorium and payment plan; today, I have a big cassava and pineapple farm, and I am currently planning to obtain a N400,000 loan,’’ she said.
Sherumukuma also commended the micro-finance banks for their liberal loan schemes with low interest rates.
Mrs Roselyn Apebe, a member of Able Farmers’ Cooperative Society in Agbowa-Ikosi, also thanked the micro-finance banks for making lives easy for them.
”With their help, I am now a big-time farmer with large cocoa yam and cassava farms; I have also expanded my farming activities, while venturing into other businesses.
Besides, Mr Omoseyinde Johnson, a member of Lofi Men and Women Cooperative Society in Ejirin, Epe, said that the easy access of the group to credit facilities had empowered its members economically, as a number of them now owned fishing canoes.
He noted that RUFIN had established various partnership and linkage schemes to help small farmers and others to break away from the yoke of poverty and prosper.
He said that such linkages had facilitated the evolution of strong synergies, thereby strengthening the impact of the programme, particularly in the areas of capacity building, financial linkages and knowledge sharing, among others.
He said that RUFIN had created an enabling environment for micro-finance schemes to thrive in the country, adding that their impact was now more pronounced among RUFIN beneficiaries in the rural areas, leading to success stories.
NAN reports that RUFIN was implemented in 12 states across the six geo-political zones of the country, with two states from each zone benefitting from it.
The programme is funded by the Federal Government and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
RUFIN has ended in May but some beneficiaries underscored the need to restart the programme and extend it to states, which hitherto had not benefited from it, because of its positive impact on the rural populace.

Business

Boat Mishap Kills Pastor, Wife And Church Members In Brass Water

Published

4 days ago

May 18, 2026

The Tide

A boat accident in Bayelsa state has killed a serving Pastor, Wife and other church members along Brass waterways

The sad incident happened at Odioama in Brass local government area of Bayelsa State when the Pastor, wife and members of his church were in a programme.

?Tide confirmed that the lifeless body of the Pastor’s wife has been found and deposited in a mortuary while the remains of her husband ,the Pastor is yet to be recovered

as search party are still ongoing.

Although the real cause of the boat Mishap is not yet known as at the time of this report, our Correspondent gathered that the identities of the Pastor, wife and church members were not disclosed to the public.

The mishap, Tide gathered occurred on Friday morning when the church members were on a boat transit

The Bayelsa State government and the state police command are yet to issue official statement’s on the sad accident

By: CHINEDU WOSU

Business

Rivers Workers Seek Scrapping Of Contributory Pension Scheme

Published

4 days ago

May 18, 2026

The Tide

The Rivers State Council of Nigeria Civil Service Union has called on the State Government to urgently scrap the contributory pension scheme, describing it as unfavourable to long-serving civil servants in the state.

Chairman of the union, Chukwuka Osuma, said this in an interview with newsmen in Port Harcourt, recently.

Osuma said the current pension structure has continued to worsen post-retirement hardship for workers.

He noted that the contributory pension scheme had failed to provide adequate retirement security for workers who had spent many years in service, especially those approaching retirement age.

According to him, civil servants who had served for more than 20 years were among the worst affected under the scheme, insisting that many retirees could no longer cope with prevailing economic realities.

He also informed that the Union has made moves to showcase their concerns, pleading with Governor Siminalayi Fubara to abolish the pension policy and introduce a more favourable arrangement for affected workers.

“The union was not opposed to pension reforms, the contributory scheme should only apply to newly employed workers or those with fewer years in service”, he said.

Osuma explained that workers who had already spent decades in the civil service ought to remain under a more secure pension structure capable of guaranteeing stability after retirement.

The labour leader further noted that inflation and the rising cost of living had continued to erode the value of retirement savings, thereby increasing the suffering of pensioners across the country.

He also appealed to the state government to consider extending the years of service in the civil service from 35 to 40 years and the retirement age from 60 to 65 years.

Osuma argued that such adjustment had become necessary in view of present-day economic realities and changing conditions in the workplace.

The unionist also reviewed that similar policies had already been adopted in some sectors and jurisdictions, expressing optimism that the State could also implement the reforms for the benefit of workers.

He however, commended Governor Fubara for approving an N85,000 minimum wage for workers in the state, noting that the amount was above the national benchmark of N70,000.

Osuma also acknowledged the government’s efforts in the area of workers’ promotions and bonuses, but insisted that pension reforms and extension of years of service remained critical to the long-term welfare and stability of civil servants in Rivers State.

By: King Onunwor

Business

FG Begins South-West Tour To Promote New Cooperative Bank

Published

1 week ago

May 13, 2026

The Tide

The Federal Government has launched the South-West zonal engagement and ministerial advocacy tour on the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria share capital mobilisation, sensitisation and cooperative sector digitalisation.

Reports say the initiative was launched through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.

According to reports, the advocacy tour, organised by the ministry’s Federal Department of Cooperatives, began on Monday in Lagos.

Speaking at the event, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security and Supervising Minister of Cooperative Affairs, Dr Aliyu Abdullahi, said the initiative was part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

Abdullahi described the exercise as a strategic effort to reposition the cooperative sector as a key driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity.

“Today represents a defining moment in our collective determination to reposition the cooperative sector as a major driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity,” he said.

The minister noted the modern cooperative movement in Nigeria originated in the South-West following the 1934 Strickland Report, which led to the enactment of the Cooperative Societies Ordinance of 1935.

According to him, the decision to commence the sensitisation and share capital mobilisation tour in the region is symbolic, as it marks a return to the roots of cooperative development in the country.

Abdullahi said the advocacy tour was a direct outcome of resolutions reached at the 8th Regular Meeting of the National Council on Cooperative Affairs held in Abuja in March 2026.

He said the council approved the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme, a comprehensive framework designed to strengthen the cooperative sector and align it with the administration’s goal of building a one-trillion-dollar economy.

“The reform programme focuses on seven strategic pillars, including governance reforms, cooperative financing and the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria, digitalisation, capacity building, value chain development, inclusion of youths, women and persons with disabilities, and strategic partnerships,” he said.

He said the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria and the digitalisation of the cooperative sector were the two major transformational initiatives under the programme.

“The Cooperative Bank of Nigeria is aimed at rebuilding a strong cooperative financial system capable of supporting cooperators, farmers, artisans, traders, SMEs, youths, women and persons with disabilities with accessible and affordable financial services,” he said.

Abdullahi emphasised that the proposed bank would be government-enabled but not government-funded.

“Government is not establishing the bank as an owner, nor will it rely on Treasury Single Account funds.

“The role of government through the FMAFS is to provide policy support, stakeholder coordination, regulatory facilitation and an enabling environment under the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme,” he said.

Also speaking, the Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Mrs Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to cooperative sector transformation.

She described cooperatives as critical tools for promoting inclusive growth, grassroots productivity, food security, financial inclusion and community wealth creation.

Ambrose-Medebem said Lagos State would continue to support reforms and collaborate with stakeholders to ensure the successful implementation of the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme (2025–2030).

“Together, let us build a cooperative ecosystem that is modern, transparent, digitally enabled, financially inclusive and globally competitive.

“Let us build cooperatives that not only mobilise savings, but also mobilise prosperity,” she said.