No fewer than 490 small businesses have benefited from the disbursement of another round of non-interest loans under the Kwara State social investment programme to grow their enterprises.
Ten of the 490 young business owners got either N1.5m or N2m each at a symbolic ceremony where Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq handed them the cheques.
The 10 main winners, who pitched different business ideas ranging from printing, fashion, waste recycling to agric value chains, are Hussein Ahmed (N1.5m); Azeez Akeem (N1.5m); Soliu Muhammed Lanre (N2m); Oladunni Kafilat Olaide (N2m); Femi Peter (N1.5m); Sanusi Ismail Adeshina (N2m); Ali Michael (N2m); Kareem Naimat (N2m); Adebayo Hadiat Tinuola (N1.5); and Abdulrauf Abdulraheem (N1.5m).
The winners were said to have emerged from a rigorous process involving 15,708 applicants following different layers of screening by jurors drawn from the private sector and public service top players.
The interest-free loan was given through Kwapreneur 3.0, a third in the series of the youth-focused initiative to support young people to thrive.
AbdulRazaq said his administration would continue to implement policies and programmes that would make Kwara a better place to live, invest, and work.
“KWAPRENEUR is one of the many poverty alleviating activities of KWASSIP. It is one of the ways to provide funding for small businesses, lubricate the economy, and reduce poverty. We are simply trying to give everyone a fair shot and a sense of belonging within available resources,” AbdulRazaq added.
Abdulquowiy Olododo, KWASSIP Chief, said: “Kwapreneur is a non-interest loan scheme that is designed for young entrepreneurs in Kwara State to support new young businesses and help existing businesses to expand. The overall objective of the scheme is to ensure we encourage youth entrepreneurship to create the next generation of Job creators to see that Kwara State becomes a business-driven economy.
“Series of stages have been passed in screening the applications we received based on key criteria to determine the final beneficiaries for Kwapreneur 3.0.
The panelists included Mr. Yinka Umar, a successful banker from the Fidelity bank with 17 years experience; Adebayo Lawal from Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN); Mrs Rukayat Yahaya, CEO Temirah Entrepreneur Community (TEM); Abdulraheem Oldimeji; and Abdulkareem Abdulrasaq, an enterpreneur and social critic.
Courage Balogun, one of the beneficiaries of Kwaprenuour 1.0 who gave a goodwill message, described AbdulRazaq as a lover of the youths, testifying that the Governor’s passion for Kwarans, particularly young entrepreneurs, transcends religious, ethnic and political boundaries.