The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, said on Saturday that between N250,00 to N5m would be accessible to each benefitting youth from the Federal Government’s N75bn youth entrepreneurial support fund.
The minister had penultimate Saturday said the Federal government created a youth fund of N25bn as part of efforts to address the #EndSARS protests and other related youth restiveness across the country.
Ahmed explained that the youth fund would be increased to N75bn within the period of three years.
On Saturday, in an interface with the 77 District Heads and religious leaders held at the Kaduna State University in the state capital, the minister explained how the youth could access the N75bn fund.
Ahmed said benefiting youths would receive various amounts of money ranging from N250,000 to N5m each.
This, she explained, would be dependent on the business idea, proposal and repayment plan of each benefiting youth.
The minister added that the interest-free loan was expected to be paid back to the government within a period of five years.
The finance minister said the meeting was designed to get inputs on best ways to empower the youths in reaction to the #EndSARS protests.
She appealed to religious and traditional leaders to help sensitise parents at community level on the need to instil family values in their children.
The minister said, “We are calling the attention of parents that we have failed our children in the sense that the kind of value we use to have is no more.
“We need to remind ourselves that our children need to be upright and that this criminality going on a daily basis is not for their benefits and the benefit of the state and country.”
On his part, the Minister of Environment, Dr Mohammed Abubakar, urged stakeholders to support government in the discharge of its duties of protecting lives and property.
Abubakar also called on the youths to be self-reliant by focusing on skills acquisition and not to be over dependent on government.
In her remarks, the deputy governor of the state, Dr Hadiza Balarabe, condemned the recent spate of looting and destructions of public and private property across the country.
Balarabe appealed to the monarchs and religious leaders to sensitise their subjects and followers to always uphold law and order.
