October 12, 2006/punch

The National Poverty Eradication Programme has raised N2bn for micro-credit schemes through the Multi-Partners Matching Fund.

The National Coordinator, NAPEP, Dr. Magnus Kpakol, made this known on Wednesday in Abuja at the presentation of the agency’s programmes’ implementation process and guidelines to its new states’ secretaries.

Out of the N2bn, he said that the Rivers State Government contributed N500m, thereby raising the available funds for distribution in the state to over N1.2bn.

“The Rivers State Government contributed N500m to the MPMF which was equally matched with another N500m by Oceanic Bank to raise the available funds for distribution in the state to over N1.2bn,” he said.

Kpakol stated that 50 per cent of Nigerians had crossed the poverty line and explained that the micro-credit scheme was aimed at empowering the poor.

He identified the challenges confronting the poor to include lack of access to information, lack of access to market, and lack of access to capital.

“NAPEP will continue to explore fresh initiatives in fighting poverty in Nigeria. We need to pay attention to the development of infrastructure, especially electricity supply which is required for the establishment of businesses, whether cottage, micro-or large-scale,” the NAPEP boss said.

He noted that the NAPEP secretaries were appointed to provide a pro-active, technical expertise for the states in the renewed fight against poverty.

Kpakol added that the secretaries were expected to mobilise more resources from state and local governments in addition to private sector operators across the country.

He said, “We expect more results from the states because naturally, the state coordinators are political appointees and in order to have sustainable performance, we need to have technicians that would be there all the time.

“Unlike in the past when the state secretaries were just there for administrative purposes, these ones are going for technical purposes and even if the state coordinators are moved to other positions or other appointments, the work could still go on smoothly in the states.”