Dateline Lagos: Dangote Donates To Disadvantaged Women In Lagos

Supporting social and economic change through investments and interventions to improve the lives of the less privileged in society will make a positive difference in the growth of the country. Well, that statement is credited to the chairman of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, during the launch of his micro grant program and distribution of 400 million naira to disadvantaged women in Lagos. He deserves a better wealth, they say, is not measured by quantity but by the number of lives it has touched. That perhaps best describes what Dangote Foundation is doing for women in Lagos State.

Honorable Lola, through its micro grant scheme, the foundation is giving out 400 million naira to be dispersed to 4,000 disadvantaged and vulnerable women across the state. The micro grant program is one of the two economic empowerment programs of the Dangote Foundation. For the first time in the history of the program, beneficiaries will be given mobile phones in addition to the 10,000 naira cash grant. Payments will be made electronically via mobile money platform, and the beneficiaries can redeem their cash right away immediately.

Keynote address to the Governor of Lagos State, violated by the gesture. Governor Sanwo-Olu said the move will complement the efforts of the state government's economic empowerment and poverty reduction program.

This gesture shows a depth of character and compassion that should be emulated by other people who are equally endowed. I owe members of the micro grants beneficiary selection committee to ensure transparency in the nomination process from the ward level to all the stages where this thing will be done. Nobody must be denied access to this facility on the basis of gender, political, ethnic, or religious affiliation. Let me also use this opportunity to appeal to the first set of beneficiaries not to abuse the opportunity afforded them by the micro grant program. The seed grants you will receive have been provided to enable you engage in petty commercial activities and cottage business that will put food on the table for your family and not a lest that should be spent frivolously. I assure Lagosians that we shall be consistent in providing a conducive environment that will ensure continuous development and economic empowerment for residents and investors. I also urge other well-meaning, public-spirited individuals and corporate organizations to emulate the kind of gesture that has been done by Dangote Foundation this evening and also collaborate with Lagos State government to provide socioeconomic and other poverty alleviation initiatives to enhance the quality of life of our people. And it has been unveiled. Please put your hands together.

Besides Lagos, over 250,000 women have so far benefited from this program across six states. It targets a minimum of 1,000 vulnerable women in each of the 774 local government areas across the country.

The Lagos State Public Works Corporation has taken delivery of six trucks of 20 tons each, procured by the state government to enhance its operation of maintaining and rehabilitating roads across the state. The equipment were handed over to the corporation by the state commissioner for the environment on behalf of the state governor, Mr. Sanwo-Olu.

The equipment are also needed to effectively execute the 114 rural road projects being embarked upon by the state government in all 57 local council areas. The target of His Excellency is that almost all neighborhood roads must be tarred. We have done 114 this year, next year we do another 114, the following year we do 114, and we go on like that. Not to talk of what the ones they are rehabilitating and are doing. So by the end of the year, our target is to get every neighborhood, important and less important neighborhood road, to become tarred. This is the way to go to build up our infrastructure. One of the most critical infrastructure we need to have here is road, because most of us we go around in our private cars and all the rest. So that is our target, and we are empowering them so that we can meet this target. It will be easier for us to meet. We have only five in our kit here, and the five, one will be down today, two will be down tomorrow. We manage to maintain them and return them to the road. We've been at the mercy of people, you understand, and we've been paying so much to hire trucks. At times we pay as much as, depending on the volume of jobs that we carried out in that month, we pay so much as 40-something million. And we carried the case to the governor. We want to bless God for his life, he's a listening governor, you understand me. And we told him that we prefer to be using those monies to be purchasing tippers little by little, you understand. We'll be doing two things in that case: we'll be employing people because we will get drivers and the motor boys. You understand me, like this six now we are going to employ 12 people, you understand me. And aside from that, it's going to enhance our activities.

And that's it on the program this week. Keep an eye on our social media platforms showing on your screen. Let's hear your thoughts and comments, especially on the development of the Fourth Mainland Bridge and the BRT transport interchange. Stay safe and pray for the peace and progress of Nigeria. It's ours. I'm Loretta Chogo. Bye for now.