Ganduje’s intervention for SMEs, others timely – Kano deputy speaker

Muhammad Bello Butu-Butu, Deputy Speaker of the Kano State House of Assembly, has described the empowerment initiative for farmers and small-scale business owners by Umar Abdullahi Ganduje, son of former Kano State governor, as timely and impactful.

He said the initiative would significantly improve the livelihoods of youths, farmers and small business owners across the state.

Butu-Butu spoke at an empowerment programme held in Kano, where solar equipment and irrigation facilities were distributed to beneficiaries drawn from Dawakin-Tofa, Tofa and Rimin Gado Federal Constituency.

He noted that the initiative responds directly to the economic realities of rural communities, particularly the challenge of unreliable electricity.

“This empowerment programme will go a long way in improving the livelihoods of our youths and small business owners,” he said. He also called for unity among members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the State.

The programme was executed by Umar Ganduje in his capacity as Executive Director, Technical Services of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA). It involved the distribution of solar-powered irrigation pumps to 120 young farmers, as well as solar energy systems to 160 Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (SMEs).

In a statement issued on Monday in Abuja, Edwin Olofu, Media Aide to former APC National Chairman and ex-Kano State governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, said each SME beneficiary received a 1.2-kilowatt solar system to ensure uninterrupted business operations and reduce dependence on petrol and diesel.

Addressing participants, Umar Ganduje said the initiative was designed to support male and female youths whose businesses depend heavily on electricity, while also promoting year-round farming through solar-powered irrigation.

He disclosed that the programme marked the seventh phase of empowerment in the constituency, adding that 13,947 people had benefited from similar interventions so far.

Also speaking, Anas Dan Maliki, the Chairman of Dawakin-Tofa Local Government Area, commended the initiative and pledged to replicate it at the grassroots level.