Katsina begins phased fund disbursement for more than 40,000 women

The disbursement of business capital to more than 40,000 women in Katsina State has begun under the Community Investment Fund component of the Nigeria for Women Programme Scale-Up Project, although Governor Dikko Radda stressed that Sunday’s ceremony marked the start of a phased process rather than its completion. Vice President Kashim Shettima, speaking at the flag-off ceremony in Katsina, described the initiative as an investment in women’s productive capacity rather than a simple cash distribution. He said beneficiaries had met the programme’s eligibility requirements through savings and participation in Women Affinity Groups.

Shettima said the programme was intended to help women expand enterprises, raise household incomes, create employment and improve their ability to withstand economic shocks. He also emphasised that the value of the intervention should be judged by its effect on businesses and families, not solely by the number of recipients. The Vice President urged beneficiaries to maintain proper records, make careful purchases and preserve trust within their groups.

He said access to finance should be matched with savings, training, financial literacy and productive resources, adding that women should understand borrowing terms and be able to distinguish revenue from profit. He also called for transparency in administering the fund. According to Shettima, eligibility rather than political influence must determine access, transactions should be documented and beneficiaries should receive clear answers about the process.

He commended the Katsina government and the World Bank, while urging continued monitoring after the disbursement ceremony. Radda said Katsina had contributed more than N4 billion to the project and that the state executive council approved another N4 billion last month. Punch Nigeria reported that the state was matching every dollar provided by the World Bank.

Channels Television similarly said the counterpart funding helped expand the initiative from its initial locations to all 34 local government areas, though the reports differ on the precise description of the expansion: Punch said it began in Katsina, Funtua and Daura before adding six more local government areas, while Channels described the programme as expanding from an initial six areas to the entire state. The governor said eligible groups not included in the initial phase should remain patient because further disbursements would follow as groups meet the programme’s requirements. He also outlined plans to connect women’s livelihood collectives to profitable value chains, larger markets, business support and skills.

Channels reported that women with hearing impairment had formed their own groups and were included in the programme. World Bank representative Matthew Verghis said the wider, $540 million Nigeria for Women Programme Scale-Up is operating in 32 states, directly targeting five million women and supporting an estimated 4.5 million jobs. He said women in the programme had mobilised more than N20 billion in savings.

Katsina Commissioner for Women Affairs Aisha Malumfashi separately reported more than 2,393 groups in Katsina and Daura and over N310 million in collective savings, figures that provide local detail but are not directly reconciled in the reports with the wider programme totals.