The National Directorate of Employment (NDE) Monday gave out N100,000 loans to 43 farmers in Plateau, under its Agric Rural Employment Promotion (REP-LOAN) scheme.
The state coordinator of NDE, Malam Ibrahim Abdulazeez Ardo, stated this while interacting with the beneficiaries in Jos, the state capital.
He said the loans were not a ‘national cake’ hence the need for the funds to be judiciously utilised and repaid as and at when due.
“I want to congratulate you as the beneficiaries of this grant after months of rigorous training on different fields of agricultural business.
“However, I want you to remain focused and ensure that you do well in the business you are embarking on,” he said.
He said the loan is not a, “grant or a national cake.”
“You are expected to start paying back after six months of receiving it. I charge you to adopt modern ways of farming which will yield more for you, thereby increasing your income and creating employment for others.
“We expect that at the end of the day, you will create over a hundred employments from this,” he added.
Abdulazeez said the scheme, implemented across the 36 states and the FCT and the fourth to be carried out in Plateau, was part of federal government’s efforts to eradicate poverty and create employment to Nigerians.