Students, Pregnant Women, Others to Benefit from N5bn Intervention Fund – Abiodun

The Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, on Wednesday announced the disbursement of over N5bn intervention plans to cushion the economic hardship faced in the state.

He assured that it would go a long way to help the residents of the state stay afloat the biting effects of the country’s struggling economy occasioned by the rising inflation and currency devaluation.

Abiodun revealed that the intervention was a direct reaction to the fact that the government was never oblivious or insensitive of the hard times Nigerians were going through.

The governor explained that the intervention plans would cover education, health distribution of food as well as deliberate welfare packages for the workers.

He said that whatever the country was experiencing were necessary sacrifices had to be made towards ensuring a greater tomorrow.

Abiodun lauded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for his continuous efforts in navigating the complexities of the nation’s economic landscape saying that his dedication to steering the ship through turbulent times had not gone unnoticed.

Abiodun said “Even the IMF and World Bank have commended these initiatives. It is this sincerity of purpose that is the main ingredient of the continued success of the “Renewed Hope” Agenda.

“The Federal Government is not only steadfast in its commitment towards creating a brighter future for all citizens, but is also trying hard to foster a society where prosperity and well-being of the entire citizens prevail.”

Abiodun specifically said that under this intervention plans, at least 100,000 indigent primary and secondary school students would collect N10,000 educational grants, 27, 600 tertiary institutions students will collect N50,000 grants while over 850,000 pupils across the primary and secondary schools in the State will be given five exercise books each.

He disclosed further that, over 70,000 beneficiaries including women, children and the elderly will benefit from the health insurance which is N18000 per person while the state is also targeting 300,000 households for its free distribution of food stuff like rice, garri among others under this intervention plans.

Abiodun also plans payment of N500m monthly to settle the backlog of deductions owed the workers in the state .

He explained that “As our administration acknowledges the concerns raised by many of our citizens regarding the rising food prices and shortages, coupled with the depreciation of the Naira, we identify with you and are taking proactive measures to alleviate the impact of these challenges to guarantee the welfare, well-being and wellness of our citizens in this difficult time.

“In this direction and through targeted interventions, we aim to address these challenges by implementing a series of phased initiatives aimed at alleviating these burdens on all our citizens.

“The state has taken the following steps: education sector: providing a minimum of five exercise books for all 850,000 students in our public primary and secondary schools. Providing a one-time N10,000 education support grant for at least 100,000 pupils in our public primary and secondary schools in the state.

“Providing all 27,600 indigent students in tertiary institutions nationwide with an education grant of N50,000 each.Health Sector:We will be providing insurance health cover for over 70,000 beneficiaries to include pregnant women, children, the elderly, market women and other members of the informal sector.

“More specifically, for pregnant women, under our Ibidero Scheme, we would be providing free pre-natal care, an additional N5,000 per birth and free post-natal care in our State Hospitals and Primary Health Care Centers across the State.

“Food palliatives: Provision of food palliatives to include rice and other food items for about 300,000 households across the State. Civil Servants:The State Government will commence to offset the backlog of inherited deductions.

“To this end, we are immediately committing N500M monthly payment towards outstanding deductions. It is noteworthy that we have continues to pay N10,000 transport allowance to all civil servants for the last 8 moths.

“This brings our total immediate interventions as a responsible State Government to about N5Bn across all sectors of the State economy.

“Our primary responsibility as a Government is to provide security of lives and properties to all residents in the State. I have met with the law enforcement agencies in our State and let me be clear, I will not allow anyone to test our will.

“Anyone who wants to test our will, will do so at their own peril. While the road ahead may be challenging, your patience, understanding and cooperation are crucial as we navigate these challenging times together”