The National Directorate of Employment (NDE) in line with the implementation of its Agricultural Enhancement Scheme (AES) has disbursed loans to off-season farmers in Benue State.
Director-General of NDE, Mallam Abubakar Nuhu Fikpo, in his speech during the ceremony to mark the disbursement of the soft loans to beneficiaries in Makurdi, said 28 of the total 700 beneficiaries of the loan across 14 states in the country are Benue unemployed farmers.
He said the facility was meant to enable beneficiaries establish agribusinesses of their choice in order to become self-reliant, create wealth and reduce poverty.
Fikpo, represented by the Coordinator of NDE in Benue, Akile Patrick, noted that the increasing rate of unemployment necessitated the idea of entrepreneurial and agricultural enterprises to close the skills gap that exist among young graduates and school leavers searching for employment through its Rural Employment Promotion (REP).
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“Today, we are here to flag off the provision of facilities to 700 beneficiaries under the 2023 Agricultural Enhancement Scheme (AES). Under this scheme, graduated trainees of various REP training schemes will be provided with facilities in the 14 states of the federation and FCT to enable them start up or enhance their off farm agricbusiness in their chosen areas of interest to become self-employed, create wealth and generate employment opportunities for others,” he said.
The NDE boss asked the beneficiaries to see the gesture as a rare opportunity which should not be allowed to fail, adding that the privilege for entrepreneurship offered them should be utilised for high premium multiplier effect in terms of increased job creation.
On his part, the Head of Department of REP in the state, Adoga Oche, said the N50,000 each facility already credited to the beneficiaries’ banks account has a monetarism of six months after which they will be expected to pay back the loan within the next three years (36 months), urging them to invest wisely.
