82 Ekiti Communities Get N300m From Governor Fayemi

Dr Kayode Fayemi, Ekiti State Governor
Dr Kayode Fayemi, Ekiti State Governor

Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has given N300m to 82 communities in the state to undertake various community projects under the Self-Help Programme of the state government.

The cheques were presented to the communities in Oye Ekiti at a ceremony attended by dignitaries including the Chairman of Action Congress of Nigeria, Chief Bisi Akande, a former governor, Niyi Adebayo, and the governor’s wife, Bisi Fayemi.

According to the governor, the gesture was in fulfillment of the resolutions reached with community leaders in the state during the stakeholders’ meetings held last year,adding that the self-help project was in line with the government’s commitment to bring development to the people.

“As part of the efforts of the present administration to bring development to the rural communities where over 75 per cent of the populace reside, the Ministry of Rural Development and Community Empowerment was created in January 2013.

“Unlike the previous administration, all the stakeholders in the state were fully involved in the preparation of the 2013 budget, and we have adopted the zero budgeting method as is currently being practised all over the world.

“The opinions of all the various strata/segments of the people in the state were sought before the 2013 budget was prepared using a dynamic bottom-up approach,” Fayemi said.

Speaking further, Fayemi said the government was revitalising cooperative development by entering into partnership with the Bank of Agriculture with a view to using the cooperative federalism model as an alternative vehicle to reaching grassroot communities and local socio-economic activities.

He said the state government would therefore shore up the cooperative societies with N300m while the Bank of Agriculture would provide another N300m.