Gov Oyetola Launches Social Support Scheme For Osun Widows, Elderly People In Osogbo …Earmarks N20million Monthly

Osun state Government has launched a  social support scheme to tackle social vices, poverty and protect vulnerable citizens  while earmarking  N20million for the programme monthly.

The initiative which targets 4,000 beneficiaries is another demonstration of the commitment of the Governor Adegboyega Oyetola administration to widening  its social inclusion net, empowering  the less privileged and raising their standard of living. 

 A statement made available to Team@orientactualmags.com   by the governor’s media office on Friday , noted that the beneficiaries of the scheme are widows and elderly people, who had been carefully selected from the State Operation Coordinating Unit (SOCU) document that was sponsored by the World Bank  focusing on poor and vulnerable households.

Some of the beneficiaries , who received the credit alerts whilst the programme was still ongoing, could not hide their joy and they commended  the state government  for coming up with the initiative  that was described  as unprecedented.

Recall that the state government under Governor Oyetola’s  leadership  had engaged in several collaborative efforts with the Federal Government to cater for the needs of the poor including distribution of cash grants to poor and vulnerable households. 

It would also be recalled that recently, the State Government had  made N20, 000 cash available   to each of  over 5,000 beneficiaries across the 30 Local Government Areas, including Ife-East Area Office, Modakeke.

Flagging off the scheme at the Staff Development Centre, Abere, Osogbo, on Friday, Governor Oyetola said his administration had injected huge capital inflow into various social protection initiatives while also collaborating with the Federal Government and the private sector to enhance the welfare and wellbeing of people of the state. 

‘In line with our commitment to giving  better life to the poor and the indigent, we have given social protection a pride of place, with over 14 social investment programmes targeted at elderly people, the young people, the poor, and the  school children.

These expansive programmes and the attendant impact we have recorded have earned us awards from the eras of MDGs to that of SDGs and even prompted the Federal Government to send a delegation to understudy our state.

All these initiatives are intended to bring all the strata of the society into the welfare net, banish hunger, terminate mystery, spread prosperity and stabilize the economy of the State.

We shall continue to help marginalized groups including women, people living with disabilities and the aged to develop income-generation activities to make them contribute to the economic potential of the state. 

We shall continue to pursue programmes that will put the people first, strengthen the weak in our economic chain and achieve sustainable economic development. Let me assure you that as long as I remain the governor by the grace of Almighty God, we will sustain this initiative’ he said.

The governor urged the beneficiaries to engage in productive ventures that will turn their situation around saying, ‘as a government, we stand with you in your efforts to bring courage and meaning into your lives and be the good mothers and senior citizens that you desire to be’.

Speaking earlier, the State Commissioner for Regional Integration and Special Duties, Engr Olalekan Badmus,  had said the scheme was one of the several social intervention programmes being run by the state government aimed at bringing relief to the less privileged in the society.

‘Since becoming  the chief executive, our Governor has never left anyone in doubt about his unflinching commitment to the social wellbeing of the citizens. The achievement recorded in all our ongoing intervention programmes would not have been possible without his resolve and drive to bring happiness to the citizens particularly the vulnerable in the state. 

In this special Scheme, 4,000 indigent people of Osun origin, comprising widows and the elderly people are being supported on a monthly basis with the sum of twenty million naira on five thousand naira per beneficiary.

It is our belief that with this initiative, and others before it, the government’s projection to create a meaningful world for our peace-loving people to live in would be possible in no distant time’ he added- Team@orientactualmags.com
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