Governor Umo Eno has announced that women in Akwa Ibom State will only access business grants through cooperatives organised in each of the 329 wards. He said individual applications would not be considered, stressing that collective participation was key to the success of the initiative. The governor urged women to form groups ahead of the official launch of the ward cooperative programme. Eno stated the move was intended to ensure accountability and effective distribution of resources. "Women should organise themselves into cooperatives in their various wards to benefit from the business grant scheme," he said.
The administration believes the cooperative model will promote unity, financial discipline, and sustainable growth among women entrepreneurs. No specific funding amount or timeline for disbursement was disclosed. The programme is part of broader economic inclusion efforts by the Eno-led government.
Requiring women to form cooperatives before accessing grants shifts power to those who can navigate group organisation, not necessarily those most in need. Governor Umo Eno's approach assumes collective structures will reduce misuse, but it may exclude isolated or low-literacy women who struggle to mobilise. If the goal is broad empowerment, the system risks becoming a test of social coordination rather than economic support. Without clear guidelines on how cooperatives will be verified and funded, the initiative could entrench existing local hierarchies.
