GOV ENO DISBURSES N303M GRANTS TO AKWA IBOM TRADERS, FARMERS, YOUTHS
The Itu/Ibiono Ibom Federal Constituency in Akwa Ibom was buzzing with jubilation as nearly 700 traders, artisans, farmers, and entrepreneurs received over N303 million in direct grants under Governor Umo Eno’s Arise Business Empowerment Programme. But beyond the cash infusion, it was the governor’s message that turned heads.
“We don’t ask where you’re from or what party you belong to. All we care about is your hard work and honesty,” Eno told the excited crowd at the Ibiono Ibom Unity Hall. That statement challenged long-standing patterns of political patronage that have often favored loyalists over merit.
Beneficiaries included 200 entrepreneurs who received N500,000 each to boost their small businesses, 200 market women supported through the Ibom Market Traders’ initiative, 200 farmers, and 80 young people under the Ibom Leadership and Entrepreneurship Development Programme.
Governor Eno emphasized that the programme’s goal is not political capital but economic sustainability. “If you misuse the funds, the next person may suffer,” he warned, urging recipients to repay the trust placed in them with responsible financial decisions.
The initiative has fast become one of Akwa Ibom’s most ambitious people-focused
