The Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, has launched the ten thousand naira collateral interest-free loan scheme, Trader Moni, in Cross River State. Professor Osinbajo launched the microcredit scheme on Tuesday in Calabar amid a crowd of traders at Watt market in the state capital.
He flagged off the program in the company of the state governor, Professor Ben Ayade, and top government officials. The Trader Moni scheme began in 2016 and is part of the Social Investment Programme of the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
It was launched in Cross River after it had already kicked off in Lagos, Kano, Abia, Akwa Ibom, Katsina, Osun and Kogi, as well as Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.
The Presidency had denied claims that beneficiaries must possess a Permanent Voter Card (PVC) to be eligible for the program, saying that the beneficiaries are only expected to show they are petty traders.