Gov. David Umahi says the state government will give N100,000 each to organised widows in the state to enable them to go into farming next year.
Umahi said this on Friday in Abakaliki during a Christmas party organised by state government for elders and widows.
He hoped that mobilising the 4,300 organised widows across the state and encouraging them to farm would further enhance the capacity of the state in agriculture.
He therefore ordered organisers of widows in the state to mobilise them ahead of the commencement of next farming season.
He also directed his aides on Religious and Welfare Matters, along with Chieftaincy Matters and Rural Development to introduce rice and cassava farming to boost food production in the state.
He said: “I will like organisers of the widows to engage them in agriculture in the next farming season by January 2020.
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“And in the year, we should be able to give every widow N100,000 each to enable them to start farming.”
In a remark, Chief Samuel Okoronkwo, the Commissioner for Chieftaincy Matters and Rural Development, commended the governor for sustaining the programme on the uplift of the lives of elders and widows in the state.
“The government has done well in carrying elders and widows in the state along and giving them a sense of belonging,” Okoronkwo said.
He said that government had already given rice and cash gifts to the 4,300 widows for their Christmas and New Year celebrations.
The Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria, Rev.-Fr. Abraham Nwali, applauded the governor and his wife, Rachael, for putting smiles on the faces of the downtrodden in the state.
Nwali, who is also Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Religious and Welfare Matters, urged the elders and widows to sustain their prayers for the progress and development of the state.
NAN
