Buhari: 45% of SME funds have been reserved for women

President Muhammadu Buhari says 45 percent of the small and medium scale enterprises have been reserved for women.

The president was speaking on Friday at the statehouse in Abuja when he received the national and international working groups of the Supporting Advancement of Gender Equity (SAGE) Initiative to commemorate the 2021 International Women’s Day.

Buhari said he has directed Pauline Tallen, the minister of women affairs, and Abubakar Malami, the minister of justice and attorney-general of the federation, to inaugurate an inter-ministerial gender-based violence management committee to address all forms of violence against women and children in the country.

This, he explained, is necessary considering the spike in gender-based violence during the lockdown imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

“This administration places a premium on promoting women’s inclusiveness in national development as we have demonstrated with those holding key portfolios in this administration.

“I am very proud of the achievements of my former Minister for Environment and United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, Fatima Mohammed Kyari as the African Union Permanent Observer to the United Nations and the newly elected Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

“We will continue to support them to succeed. And we shall continue to advocate for our women who qualify to lead international fora.”

Buhari said limited access to education, poverty, and gender-based violence strongly contributes to women’s participation in politics and governance.

“At the commissioning of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs Headquarters Building in January 2020, I had pledged to address child marriage and boost girl-child education across the country.

“This is borne out of my concern about the increasing number of out-of-school children in the country. This government would sustain ongoing efforts to address this issue.

“Our resolve remains unshaken in tackling these issues. Despite the spike of incidents of abduction of school children and other security challenges, this government remains resolute in its pursuit of a just and credible society devoid of inequities and promotion of the rule of law.”

Buhari said he will also lend his voice to the ongoing amendment of the All Progressives Congress party constitution to ensure meaningful participation of women in elective offices.