From David Onuoja, Abuja
The Senator, representing Kogi Central Senatorial District and Chairman, Senate Committee on Local Content, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has empowered Kogi Central Tertiary Institution Students with multipurpose business carts.
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan equally flagged off free Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), registration of 2,500 Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the Senatorial District.
The initiative she said, is part of her continued efforts to drive innovation in governance and impact the lives of indigent students of Kogi Central origin in tertiary institutions across the country.
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The distributed business empowerment carts are aimed at fostering self-reliance and entrepreneurship among the students. It is also designed to equip them with the skills and resources necessary to start and grow profitable businesses, ensuring that they contribute positively to society after graduation. This proactive measure will help reduce dependency on government support and ease societal burdens.
The flag-off of the free CAC business registration also helped the students register their businesses on the spot while other business owners were also helped to register their businesses with certificates of registration presented to them instantly.
According to her, “with the flag-off, the CAC business registration across Kogi Central will commence in each of the constituency offices in the five local government areas to capture 2,500 SMEs. The registration cost N11,000 each, and was paid by the lawmaker, which the total cost is N27,500,000 for the registration of all the 2,500 SMEs.
Speaking during the programme, Senator Natasha said, she has been a social entrepreneur, advocating for self-reliance and skills for sustainable development before becoming a political reformer.
She emphasised the important of learning about the ecosystem of a business which she said has become necessary for business owners to register their businesses as it is the foundation of any legal business to acquire the right benefits.
She expressed that, the cost of the 2,500 businesses that were registered by the CAC are taken care of by her office. The Senator also added that the business carts are given to the National Association of Ebira Students (NAES), in the selected institutions to run the business and support the students who are underprivileged in their midst. The lawmaker gave each of the beneficiaries start-up fund.
The CAC team led by its FCT Zonal Office, Mr Bello Muftahu, said they were around to carry out the business registration as part of the fulfilment of the law, adding that such businesses will have legal recognition and allow them to access government and private grants and loans.
The beneficiary institutions include: Kogi State Polytechnic, Lokoja, Kogi State University, Anyigba, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Confluence University of Science and Technology, Osara, Federal College of Education, Okene, Bayero University, Kano, Federal Polytechnic, Nasarawa and Kaduna State Polytechnic.
The multipurpose business carts, consist of: clipper, barbing mirror, plexi glass frame, branded umbrella parasol, box cooler/warmer, 50 watts solar panel, 3 in 1 USB charging cable, rechargeable night lamp, 36AH battery (installed), solar charge controller, dual USB charging port, triple circuit isolator/lvd, and barbing chair.
While the clean cooking kiosk PRO, on the other hand consists of; Main cooking frame with cabinet, side cooking frame, 12 watts solar charger, 6kg gas cylinder, sideboard, burner support, industrial cooking burner, grilling burner bowl, grilling burner with gas control valve and hose, oven burner with gas control valve, storage cabinet, grilling mesh, and branded umbrella parasol.
Those present at the event are: Member Representing Adavi/Okehi House of Representatives, Hon. Abdulraheem Abdulmaleek Danga, Member representing Ogori-Magongo in the House of Assembly, Hon. Bode Ogunmola, former House of Representative Member, Alhaji Abdurahman Badamasiu,
Others are: Provost Federal College of Education, Okene, Dr. Umar Hassan, representative of CAC, Mr. Muftahu Bello, Secretary General of Ebira Peoples Association, Baba Abdulrazaq, PDP Deputy Party Chairman, Alhaji Yahaya Karaku, representative of SMEDAN, Mrs. Mohammed Alami, market women, artisans, farmers, amongst others.
