Osun Govt To Collaborate With Ijesa Development Fund Initiative To Empower Ijesha People
- By Shola Aderinto
Osun State Government is collaborating with the Ijesa Community Development Assembly (ICDA) through the Ministry of Cooperative and Employment to make a revolving loan available for Small and Medium Scale business entrepreneurs in Ijesha land to fast-track economic growth
The Chairman of ICDA, who is also the Asiwaju of Ijesa land, Chief Yinka Fasuyi, made this known in Ibokun, headquarters of Obokun Local Government Area of Osun State, during a training programme on Ijesa Development Fund with the theme “Community Needs Identification and Appraisal for Ijesa Development Fund (IDF).”
He disclosed that the ICDA had paid its counterpart fund of #68 million, while Owa Obokun has supported the funding with #32 million to make it #100 million.
Fasuyi noted that the government’s contribution would be announced as soon as it is made.
He said the Ijesa Development Fund was established by the Ijesa Community Development Assembly, an indigenous Non-Governmental Organisation, to identify and implement socio-economic projects for the people of Ijesa land, promoting sustainable development in the area.
He observed that the objective of the initiative is to capture over 99.5 percent of Ijesa people whose names were omitted by the Ijesa Development register.
Fasuyi highlighted the newly constructed ultramodern Owa Obokun’s palace, Ijesa land Geriatric hospital, a three-year full scholarship for 250 underprivileged Ijesa students to attend the Federal School of Science and Technology Ilesa, and 100 others to study at Lenventis Foundation Agricultural School, Ilesa on a yearly basis.
“The sustainable development of Ijesa land is the responsibility of all Ijesas in the noble mission to rebuild, restore, and reposition Ijesa land. The Ijesa Development Fund (IDF) has embraced a progressive and inclusive framework to honour every act of generosity, no matter the size or scope.
No finger is too small, no hand is too big, but every contribution counts towards Ijesa development through a participatory and inclusive ICDA initiative, Ijesa Development Fund,” Asiwaju emphasised.
The IDF Accountant, Mr Akin Olatunbosun, explained the criteria for accessing the Ijesa co-op loan to include National Identification Number, warning that the revolving loan is not a national cake.
The Guest Lecturer, Professor Niyi Okunlola, enlightened the participants on Community Needs Identification, noting that a significant gap exists between needs and wants.
The Professor emphasised that community needs take precedence over its wants, stressing that satisfying people’s wants may not necessarily meet their needs.
He cited the example of a man whose requirement was funding to purchase farm implements, but instead utilized the loan to marry a new wife. This, he stated, would not have occurred if the loan had been converted to meet his actual needs, which were farm implements, rather than giving him cash.
He identified an all-inclusive participatory approach to the Needs Identification and Appraisal as the catalyst for sustainable development.
The Ijesa Development Fund (IDF) is an all-encompassing, all-inclusive, participatory, demand-driven, and sustainable Development Model developed by the Ijesa Community Development Assembly (ICDA) to identify and drive socioeconomic projects by the people, for the people, uplifting every ward and complementing government efforts across Ijesa land.
