News

FG flags-off grant for vulnerable groups in Plateau

Published

4 years ago

December 19, 2022

vicky

The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq on Thursday flagged off the Grant for Vulnerable Groups (GVG) and Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) in Plateau State with a call on the beneficiaries to make judicious use of the funds to improve their lives.

Speaking in Jos, Farouq, represented by the Ministry’s Director of Humanitarian Affairs, Ali Grema disclosed the program is being implemented in close partnerships with the State Government an effort which is a demonstration of a collective commitment to addressing poverty which is the core developmental challenge confronting the nation.

The Minister said, “Let me state here that since the inception of President Muhammadu Buhari’s Administration in 2015, when it inherited a National Poverty Incidence level averaging 70% (NBS), the Federal Government has paid more attention to generating solutions to address the plight of the poor and vulnerable in the country despite other economic challenges the Administration inherited at the time.

“This informed the decision to initiate the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP) in 2015 as a strategy for poverty reduction and enhancing social inclusion among our people especially the women in rural areas…

“Since implementing the NSIP in 2016, it has impacted many lives of the poor and vulnerable in Nigeria positively. The GVG programme was introduced in 2020 first as Grant for Rural Women (GRW) and launched in Jos, Plateau State in October 2020 to sustain the social inclusion agenda of President Buhari’s Administration.

“It is consistent with his deliberate National agenda of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years.”

She further explained that “The GVG was designed to provide a one-off grant, a cash grant of N20,000.00, to some of the poorest and most vulnerable Nigerians in rural and peri-urban areas across the 36 States of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, to empower the beneficiaries to improve their productivity and their commercial activities, mainly aimed at easing them out of poverty.

“Our target in Plateau State is to disburse the grant to over 3,500 beneficiaries across the 17 Local Government Areas of the State, which is a significant increase from 1,928 beneficiaries in 2020. This clearly demonstrates the Federal Government’s commitment to addressing poverty in the State.

“President Muhammadu Buhari has directed that 70% of these beneficiaries must be women, while the remaining 30% is for the youths. He also demanded that at least 15% of the total number of beneficiaries must specifically be allocated to citizens with special needs, including Persons with disabilities (PWDs) and Senior Citizens in the State.

“GEEP is a programme designed for vulnerable and low-income Nigerians who are involved in productive activities but have no access to loans. It gives priority to the most vulnerable in our society including widows, youths, persons with disability and the internally displaced.”

The program has three signature schemes: TraderMoni, MarketMoni and FarmerMoni. The TraderMoni loan of N50,000.00 targets underprivileged and marginalized youths in Nigeria aged between 18 and 40 years. The MarketMoni is also a loan of N50,000.00 given to underprivileged and marginalized women in society with a special focus on female-headed households. Finally, the FarmerMoni is a loan package that provides inputs worth up to N300,000.00 to rural farmers.

A total of 56,742 potential beneficiaries were registered in Plateau State after which 7,018 were verified and 4,754 were enumerated. A total number of 1,083 beneficiaries were finally selected to receive loans. The selected beneficiaries have undergone enumeration and will start receiving credit alerts from Access bank from today.

However, the State Governor, Simon Lalong through the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Danladi Atu and the State Focal Person of the NSIP, Dr Sumaye Hamza noted the State has benefitted immensely from all NSIP programmes and called on the beneficiaries to utilize the funds judiciously.

Atu added the State government has a plan of empowering not less than 20,000 before it vacates office in 2023.

News

BREAKING: Didih Smashes Commonwealth Games Record to Win Gold as Nigeria’s Weightlifting Dominance Continues in Glasgow

Published

9 minutes ago

July 27, 2026

Preport

Team Nigeria’s remarkable weightlifting campaign at the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games reached another historic milestone on Tuesday as Onome Omolola Didih powered to gold in the women’s 53kg event, smashing the Commonwealth Games Record to hand Nigeria yet another golden moment in Glasgow.

Didih was in a class of her own throughout the competition, opening with a sensational 93kg lift in the snatch, which established a new Commonwealth Record and Games Record, before completing the job in the clean and jerk to finish with a winning total of 206kg, another Games Record.

The Nigerian never relinquished her grip on the contest, producing a composed and dominant display to stay ahead of the chasing pack and further underline Team Nigeria’s growing supremacy on the weightlifting platform.

India’s Gyaneshwari Yadav settled for the silver medal with a 199kg total, which also surpassed the previous Games record, while Rebeka Groulx of Canada claimed bronze after finishing with 178kg.

Women’s 53kg Final Results

🥇 Onome Omolola Didih (Nigeria) – 206kg (Commonwealth Games Record)

🥈 Gyaneshwari Yadav (India) – 199kg (Games Record)

🥉 Rebeka Groulx (Canada) – 178kg

4️⃣ Johanni Taljaard (South Africa) – 175kg

5️⃣ Jenly Tegu Wini (Solomon Islands) – 172kg

6️⃣ Jiin Linn Chua (Singapore) – 168kg

7️⃣ Noorin Gulam (England) – 167kg

8️⃣ Kim Camilleri Lagana (Malta) – 166kg

DNF – Brenna Mae Kean (Australia)

DNF – Loa Dika Toua (Papua New Guinea)

Didih’s triumph continues an extraordinary run for Nigerian weightlifting, which has emerged as one of the country’s biggest medal-producing sports at Glasgow 2026.

Her victory follows Ruth Asuquo Nyong’s silver medal in the women’s 48kg and Edidiong Joseph Umoafia’s gold medal in the men’s 71kg, while Favour Agboro came agonisingly close to the podium after finishing fourth in the men’s 65kg.

The latest success also adds to Team Nigeria’s outstanding overall performance at the Games, where the country’s athletes have already dominated the para powerlifting events with multiple gold and silver medals.

Updated Team Nigeria Medal Table

🥇 Gold: 5

🥈 Silver: 4

🥉 Bronze: 0

Total: 9 Medals

Sports247 gathered that jubilant celebrations erupted inside the Nigerian camp immediately after Didih sealed victory, with coaches, teammates and officials hailing another record-breaking performance. The latest gold further strengthens Team Nigeria’s quest to surpass its medal target as the athletics programme gathers momentum and more medal opportunities beckon in Glasgow.

Business

United Capital, Aradel, Custodian Investment top stock pick this week

Published

1 hour ago

July 27, 2026

Preport

Floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.png

Trading in Nigerian stocks last week hit a buoyancy last seen in the market more than six weeks ago, with transaction size accelerating 57.3 per cent to 4.4 billion shares as the earnings season kicked in in earnest.

A few inspiring half-year results, notably that of BUA Cement, were made public, but many more are expected as earnings release reaches fever pitch this week and companies hurry to beat the cut-off date for filing unaudited reports.

Investors will be pricing in companies’ chances of announcing interim dividends as they take position.

PREMIUM TIMES has assembled some stocks with sound fundamentals, adopting rigorous approaches to save you the risk of picking equities at random for investment.

The pick, a product of an analytical market watch, offers a guide to entering the market and taking strategic positions, with the expectation that selected stocks will record reasonable price appreciation with the passage of time.

This is not a buy, sell or hold recommendation but a stock investment guide. You may need to involve your financial advisor before taking investment decisions.

United Capital

United Capital tops this week’s pick on the basis of its strong fundamentals. The investment bank’s net profit ratio (NPR) is 51.2 per cent, while the price-to-earnings (PE) ratio is 10.4x. Its 14-day relative strength index (RSI) is 56.2.

Aradel Holdings

Aradel Holdings makes the selection for its strong fundamentals. The NPR of the energy company is 68.7 per cent, while the PE ratio is 8.8x. Its 14-day RSI is 43.2.

Custodian Investment

Custodian Investment appears on the pick on the basis of its robust fundamentals and for trading below its intrinsic value. The NPR of the company is 27.6 per cent, while the PE ratio is 6.3x. The 14-day RSI is 67.4.

Linkage Assurance

Linkage Assurance makes the cut by virtue of its strong fundamentals and for trading below its underlying value. The PE ratio of the insurer is 3.7x, while the 14-day RSI is 36.3.

Fidelity Bank

Fidelity Bank makes the selection on the basis of its strong fundamentals. The NPR of the lender is 16 per cent, while the PE ratio is 3.9x. Its 14-day RSI is 56.

Wema Bank

Wema Bank features on the list for its strong fundamentals and for trading below its underlying value. The NPR of the lender is 30.5 per cent, while the PE ratio is 1.2. Its 14-day RSI is 59.2.