Umar Nakwada, general manager of the Zamfara Community and Social Development Agency (CSDA), said N77.7 million had been disbursed in grants to 518 small-scale traders in the state.

Mr Nakwada stated this in Gusau on Wednesday at a cluster training for the second cycle of beneficiaries under the Nigeria COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES) in the state.

He said part of the reason for the training was to equip the participants with the requisite knowledge of financial literacy, saving techniques and cooperatives.

”The training is also about skills acquisition, entrepreneurship development, micro-enterprise and management,” he said.

The general manager said each of the 518 beneficiaries got a one-off grant of N150,000 from the fund.

”We are encouraging small-scale traders in the state to do their businesses in a manner that will be productive.

”We see it as part of our responsibilities to train them; we want to see them utilising the grants effectively,” Mr Nakwada said.

He urged the beneficiaries to take the training seriously and utilise the lessons learnt to improve their businesses.

The NG-CARES programme is a $750-million state-driven initiative supported by the World Bank.

The programme seeks to elevate businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and expand access to livelihood support.

It seeks to provide improved access to food security services and financial grants to poor and vulnerable households.

(NAN)