Oborevwori’s Govt Targets 100,000 Delta State Residents With N5bn Empowerment

The Delta State Government says its ongoing economic reforms and empowerment initiatives are strengthening residents’ purchasing power, stimulating grassroots economic activities and supporting the state’s recovery from current economic challenges.

The Commissioner for Works (Rural Roads) and Public Information, Charles Aniagwu, disclosed this on Friday during a press briefing in Asaba, saying the administration of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori was committed to ensuring that the benefits of its reforms directly reach the people, particularly low-income earners and operators of nano and small businesses.

Aniagwu said the directive to councillors across the state to empower 200 people in their respective wards was part of measures aimed at increasing purchasing power and enabling small businesses to survive and expand.

With about 500 wards across the state, he said the initiative was expected to benefit at least 100,000 people and inject approximately N5 billion directly into the grassroots economy.

The commissioner added that political and community leaders had complemented the initiative through additional empowerment programmes. He cited Ika North-East as an example, where leaders contributed at least N5 million in each federal ward, resulting in an additional injection of about N70 million into the local economy, apart from the funds provided by councillors.

He stressed that strengthening purchasing power was critical to attracting and retaining investments, explaining that businesses required a population with sufficient capacity to patronise their products and services.

According to him, investors often preferred urban centres because of their relatively higher purchasing power, adding that improving the economic capacity of rural communities would help spread investment and business opportunities across Delta State.

Aniagwu also said the broader economic reforms of the President Bola Tinubu administration had contributed to improvements at the macroeconomic level, citing the state’s ability to mobilise contractors with up to 40 per cent, pay workers’ salaries and emoluments between the 22nd and 25th of every month, and ensure that pensioners no longer queue at Government House for payment.

He further highlighted the stability of academic activities in Delta State-owned universities, saying the improved financial position had contributed to a more stable academic calendar and was helping to secure better prospects for students.

The commissioner said these developments were products of reforms aimed at strengthening the state’s financial position while ensuring prudent management of resources.

On the recently passed 13th-month salary bill, Aniagwu commended the Delta State House of Assembly for expediting consideration of the executive bill. He said the measure, once assented to by Governor Oborevwori, would institutionalise the payment of a 13th-month salary to civil servants in the state.

Aniagwu maintained that the 13th-month salary and other government interventions were not merely election-related measures but part of a broader strategy to boost purchasing power, stimulate consumption, support businesses, ease pressure on households and create an environment capable of attracting more investments into Delta State.