Nation
NG-CARES: Minister Disburses N215m To Beneficiaries
The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister of State, Dr Ramatu Aliyu, has disbursed N215 million to 5,054 beneficiaries of the COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES) in the nation’s capital.
While disbursing the funds, Aliyu explained that the figure was made up of 3,650 beneficiaries of Social Transfer scheme, and 1,404 beneficiaries of Livelihoods grant.
She said the social transfer would run for 12 months of six cycles, adding that all the beneficiaries would be receiving stipends of N20, 000.00 bimonthly payments.
Aliyu also said beneficiaries under the livelihood Grants programme would receive between N50, 000.00 to N135, 000.00, one-off payment, depending on the business category.
The minister explained that the programme was part of the Economic Sustainability Plan of the present administration.
“The programme is anchored under the COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES) scheme. It is designed to expand access to livelihood support, food security services, and grants to poor and vulnerable households and firms.
“It also seeks to promote recovery of Medium Scales Enterprises (MSEs) in the country and revive the economy, especially in the rural areas, where more than 70 per cent of our population dwell.’’
Aliyu further said beyond the NG-CARES initiatives, the FCT Administration in the course of the year implemented other support programmes to residents of the territory.
According to her, they include the FADAMA CARES, CSDP CARES and the AEA CARES at different times and locations.
She described the event as a promise kept and mission accomplished by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Aliyu recalled that at the inception of the present administration, the party released a blue-print for lifting 100 million people from poverty through comprehensive policies of Conditional Cash Transfer, and Home Grown School Feeding.
She listed the other programmes as the N-Power schemes, Government Economic and Empowerment Programme (GEEP), Trader Moni, Market Moni and a host of others.
According to her, the programmes have impacted positively on the lives of the ordinary citizens and have surprised the nay-sayers, as testimonies of the huge successes achieved in the implementation of these programmes abound.
Presenting an overview of the programme, the FCTA Permanent Secretary, Mr Olusade Adesola, said the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria led to the closure of many MSEs, loss of jobs, stalled provision of basic services in poor communities.
“It has thereby, increased the population of Nigerians living below the poverty line.
“The programmes are in response to the hardship perpetuated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which is also in line with the vision of the Federal Government to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in ten years.
“The government of Nigeria, on behalf of the 36 states and the FCT, sought and obtained assistance from the World Bank to the tune of 750 million dollars for on-lending to the states and FCT.
“To implement a two-year emergency response programme, named the “Nigeria COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES).’’
He said that the NG-CARES programme seeks to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the livelihoods of poor individuals, farmers, vulnerable households, communities and owners of Micro and Small Enterprises.
He said that in the FCT, the programme has been domesticated and code named FCT-CARES.
Adesola said that the administration had achieved major milestones which include orientation of new staff, training of soft skills for beneficiaries of livelihoods grant, and procurement of payment service provider.
Others he said were enrolment training for Cash Transfer Facilitators (CTFs), Data Capturing of beneficiaries, and training of beneficiaries on Livelihood activities.
He thanked the FCT Minister, Mohammed Bello, and the Minister of State, Aliyu for not resting on their oars in order to see to the successful implementation of the NG-CARES programme in the FCT.
The permanent secretary also commended President Muhammadu Buhari for sustaining implementation of the Social Safety Net Programme for the benefit of the poor.
The Tide’s source reports that the highpoint of the event was the symbolic presentation of cheque to some of the beneficiaries.
The Rivers state Government has identified six local government areas with the highest burden of maternal and Neonatal mortality in the state.
State Commissioner for Health Dr Adaeze Chidinma Oreh said this in an interview with newsmen at the Maternal and Neonatal Reduction innovation initiative ( Mamii)Rivers state activation workshop and state engagement meeting in Port Harcourt.
The event was organized by The Federal Ministry of Health in conjunction with its Rivers state counterpart in Port Harcourt.
Dr Oreh also restated the preparedness of the state government to support current efforts by the federal government towards the reduction of maternal and infant mortalities in the country.
She mentioned the affected Local Government Areas to include, Andoni,Akuku Toru and Ahoada West
The rest according to the Commissioner are, Bonny, Etche and Emohua Local Government Areas.
She said the workshop will enable the team from the federal ministry of health and social welfare to brainstorm with the view to finding solution to the problem.
The Commissioner also gave reasons why the Mamii initiative was the best as far as finding solution to maternal mortality was concerned.
“The uniqueness of the Mamii initiative driven by the federal ministry of health and social welfare was that we used evidence to elicit the reasons for this deaths, so that the solutions will be context specific and tailored to the particular environment where those deaths are occuring
“For us in Rivers state we have six Mamii LGAs , nationally we we have 172 local government areas “the Commissioner said.
Earlier in her opening remarks,Dr Oreh said the state government is prepared to work with the federal ministry of health and social welfare to check the rate of maternal mortality in the state.
She commended The Minister of Health and Social welfare Professor Ali Muhammad Pategi for driving the Mamii initiative across the country and expressed optimism that the programm will see to the end of maternal mortality in the country.
Also speaking the National Coordinator Nigeria health sector Renewal Initiative Dr Adam Ahmed said Rivers state is the last state among Mamii states in the country to host the team.
He said the team will visit the affected Local Government Areas with the view to interacting with the people on how to check the trend.
He expressed the hope that with continuous efforts, maternal mortality will be checked.
Also speaking the permanent secretary Rivers state Ministry of Health Professor Justinah Jumbo said the government is not leaving any stone unturned towards reduction in maternal deaths.
The permanent secretary said Governor Siminalaye Fubara is a health friendly Governor who is desirous in improving the quality of health of Rivers people.
John Bibor
A pan-Nigeria organisation committed to the promotion and preservation of indigenous languages, Indigenous Language and Culture Promoters (ILCP), has called for the deliberate development and compulsory teaching of indigenous languages in both primary and secondary schools across the country.
The group made the call during its maiden Congress held in Bori, Rivers State, which was convened to examine challenges hindering the official adoption and effective teaching of Ogoni languages in schools.
Speaking at the Congress, the Executive Director of the organisation, HRC Mene Magnus Edooh, Amb.P, emphasised the critical role of indigenous languages in preserving a people’s culture, values and history. He warned against the gradual extinction of native languages, noting that language loss equates to identity loss.
“Years ago, Latin was a language of global relevance, but today it is largely extinct. We do not want Ogoni languages to suffer a similar fate. As a people, we cannot afford to lose our identity through the death of our languages,” Edooh said.
He explained that the Indigenous Language and Culture Promoters was established to collaborate with language stakeholders to ensure that children and younger generations remain connected to their mother tongues. The organisation also appealed to governments at all levels, as well as relevant institutions and individuals, to take strategic actions aimed at promoting and sustaining Nigeria’s indigenous languages.
Also speaking, the newly appointed Director of Media and Information, Prince David N. Gbarato, questioned the rationale behind government reluctance to accord indigenous languages their rightful place in national development policies.
According to him, “People with well-developed languages are people with well-developed indigenous systems and affairs,” stressing that language development is fundamental to cultural and societal advancement.
The Congress further served as a platform for the ratification of key officers of the organisation and featured the participation of representatives from various indigenous language groups and other language stakeholders, all of whom echoed the call for renewed commitment towards safeguarding Nigeria’s linguistic heritage.
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