In a bid to reduce the challenge of finance faced by women entrepreneurs, a non-governmental foundation, Az-Zawaj Intervention Center has supported 25 rural women from two communities in Abuja with loans.
The women chosen from a cooperative each in Tungan Maje and Mabushi were given loans of N5,000 to N10,000, depending on the businesses they were engaged in.
Founder of the centre, Hajiya Asmau Abe Wala, said the aim of the loan was to support the women with start-up capital for their petty businesses and help sustain the business of others.
“The loan is such that when the first batch of women pay back, we will use the money to support the next batch of women to help boost their businesses,” she said.
She therefore urged the women to be prudent in paying back so that others can also benefit.
A member of one of the cooperatives, Maimuna Tijjani, appreciated the scheme and called on other organisations and microfinance banks to emulate such gestures and make access to loans easier for women.
Twelve women from Tungan Maje and 13 from Mabushi who have businesses ranging from selling firewood, pure water, food items and services like tailoring, hairdressing and others were beneficiaries of the scheme.
