No fewer than one hundred and one cooperative societies have received a total of N101 million loan from the Delta State government through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)'s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund.

Representatives of the societies were handed the cheques by governor of the state, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, on Thursday at Government House in Asaba, Delta State.

The governor urged the beneficiaries to take responsibility for their success or failure as they were all chosen on merit.

Present at the event were Governor of CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele, represented by the Deputy Comptroller of CBN in the state, Dame Edith Agu; Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly, Mr Monday Igbuya; Deputy Speaker and Mr Friday Osanebi, among others. 

Okowa informed the beneficiaries that the loan was meant to improve their businesses and create more wealth for themselves.

According to him, N435, 180, 000 was disbursed to 2, 617 persons in 2016 while 1,000 persons from the 25 local government areas of the state got N101, 000, 000 on Thursday.

The governor was specifically elated as most of the beneficiaries were women.

 “To the beneficiaries, I have only one word for you; go and succeed: you no longer have an excuse to fail: from now on, you will only fail by choice.

"Make good use of the money you are receiving today; work hard, plan well, spend less and commit to quality and excellence.

"With the current economic trends in the country, there is now the clamour for Nigerians to buy made-in-Nigeria goods.

"That offers limitless opportunities to resourceful entrepreneurs to prosper in the midst of economic crisis, given the size of the Nigerian markets," he averred.

Representative of the CBN governor, Agu, thanked Okowa for his determination to see active Deltans  gainfully employed, while the Chairman of the Delta State Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency, Chief Suru Salami, stated that the programme was designed to address poverty and the problem of unemployment, adding that beneficiaries should endeavour to pay back as and when due.