Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) is to donate the sum of N30, 000 each to 9, 000 petty traders and artisans drawn from Bauchi state as COVID 19 palliative.
North east zonal coordinator of SMEDAN Isah Mohammed Doguwa disclosed this Thursday during a townhall meeting with leaders of some traders and artisans associations held at destination hotel Bauchi.
He explained that the gesture was meant to compensate petty traders and artisans as a result of the economic hardship caused by COVID 19 lockdown in the nation in recent time.
According to him,the survival funds has been approved by the president under the Nigeria Economic Sustainability Plan (NESP) to cushion the effect of COVID 19 on the economic activities of the citizens acknowledging that traders and artisans help government in jobs creation.
The SMEDAN coordinator opined that if government gives every skilled an enabling environment for their skills to be harnessed, poverty would be reduced drastically in the nation.
Doguwa enumerated the beneficiaries to include tailors, cart pushers, barbers, plumbers, shoemakers, electricians, hair dressers, transport workers and mechanics etc urging them to open banks accounts promising that the money would be paid to them directly.
“The scheme aims to provide 9,009 beneficiaries in each of the 36 states of the federation and FCT by leveraging duly registered and recognized associations would benefit”. He said.
