Empower women traders to cushion effects of fuel subsidy removal—woman leader

By Ekuson Nw’Ogbunka
Abuja

Woman leader, National Association of Nigerian Traders (NANTs) in Abuja, Chief (Mrs) Rachael Adewumi who doubles as the president of a Non Governmental Organisation (NGO): TAKEM Empowerment Initiatives (an organisation that trains and empowers the needy and the widows in the society), suggested that finacial empowerment to the women traders, at the rural and urban areas would go a long way to address the problems associated with the removal of the subsidy to Nigerian masses.

Adewumi addressed selected journalists recently in her office in the nation’s capital.

Recalled that in order to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal to poor Nigerians, President Ahmed BolaTinubu has recently proposed to share for six months, the sum of N8,000 only to each of the 12 million poor Nigerians per month.

Explaining who the market women traders are, she said that southernvoice.com, www.pwc,republic.com, among others, published that the Civil Resource Development and Documents say that the market women are predominantly traders who sell agricultural products and food. According to the Civil Resource Development and Documentation. She however stated that further researches have shown that the labour force participation rate of women in Nigeria today is 48.4%.

Adewumi therefore statwd that researches have shown that, “the women’s involvement in trade, creates jobs, equitable income distribution, growth, as women-led businesses tend to create more employments. For instance, in Nigeria, women in SMEs contribute to 50% of the nation’s GDP.”

Petty trading which many women, according to her are into, has been defined as an economic activity that involves selling and buying of goods and services in small scale, ranging from agricultural produce to imported consumer goods, adding that women are petty traders in food vending, sale of used clothes (second hand clothes), general merchandise and other trades (Mnyawi and Benedict).

She further said that researches have shown that, “the entrepreneurial spirit is strong and that Nigerian women account for 41% ownership of micro-businesses in Nigeria with 23 million female entrepreneurs operating within this segment. This places Nigeria among the highest entrepreneurship rates globally. They contribute to food security, help improve nutrition in their communities and develop economies around the world. In fact, rural women make up 43% of the agricultural force in developing countries.”

Still making points on how financial empowerment of women traders would address the problems caused by the fuel subsidy removal, Dr Rachael Adewumi said that in the rural areas, majority of those who are into farming and business of buying and selling are the women. She added that in the markets, majority of those in the business of buying and selling in every market in the rural areas are the women, who come to sell their farm produce and others who are into pretty trading.

In the urban areas, she went on, majority of those who are into business of buying and selling are the women, just as she informed that, in the streets, majority of those who own one business or the other are the women. Some of them, according to her, use tables in display their wares, saying that they perform wonderfully well.

She noted that should these women, who started their businesses and are doing wonderfully well with megre amounts they saved, be given financial support, devoid of interest of any form through their leaders, the effect of the subsidy removal, according to her would be reduced to the barest minimum. She also advised that if the financial support can’t be given to them through their leaders, it can be given through trusted and recognised NGOs, that are very close to them, both at the rural and urban areas.