The Jaiz Charity and Development Foundation (JCDF) on Thursday put smiles on the faces of 54 persons in Jahi community in Abuja by empowering them financially through loans to run their businesses.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Foundation, Dr Abdullahi Shuaib, made this known at the launch of the Disbursement of Micro-Finance Loans Scheme in the Federal Capital Territory.

According to Shuaib ,the gesture was to support the Federal Government’s move to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 1 and 2 aiming to end poverty and hunger respectively.

He said the foundation, in its aim to improve the quality of life and provide timely socio – economic development support through direct and indirect interventions to the Ummah and humanity at large had gone round Nigeria to empower people.

He said the foundation had covered 20 states so far, including all the states in the South-South except Delta and Akwa Ibom, hoping to go there soon.

“This is one of the mandates of the foundation with respect to financial inclusion of the most vulnerable people that is why today we are here as a foundation to fulfill the promise that we made to them some couple of months ago.

“What we are doing may look small to some people but based on our field work experience, it is very significant because these groups of people are the wealth creators the little things they do to make ends meet need to be supported.

“We once gave a women not captured in our programme N3,000 from our pockets out of pity; but the following year she traced us to our programme and gave us 70k as her support saying she used the money we gave her to do masa business.

“If she could part with N70,000, it meant she had extra, so this strengthened our commitment that this little money we are giving; if people put them to judicious use it could turn around their lives ,’’he said.

Shuib said that there were other opportunities in the pipeline for the beneficiaries if they judiciously utilised the money and succeeded in their businesses.

He said that the selection criteria was very simple because it was done in collaboration with the community leaders who knew their people better and picked those struggling to make ends meet.

He said that 150 people were identified, but were later screened to 54 adding that they cut across tribes and religions because the foundation does not discriminate.

The traditional ruler of Jahi, Sarkin Jahi, Alhaji Adamu Dogo, appreciated JCDF for the kind gesture and prayed to God to bless them for the love shown to his subjects.

Dogo expressed optimism that the beneficiaries would utilise the resources effectively and make more profit, adding that “I pray that God will bless and help the management of the foundation.’’

A beneficiary, Mr Adamu Yunusa, thanked the foundation for helping him, promising to put the money to good use so he could make profit and access other opportunities.

Ms Grace Enwerem expressed joy for being selected as one of the beneficiaries because the selection process was tough and promised to be committed to her business as a measure of showing gratitude.