Our Economic Empowerment program is designed to empower people by providing affordable capital, appropriate technology, and capacity building resources they need to lift themselves out of poverty. We provide them opportunity through microfinance – to help them reap the rewards of their own labor.

The Rural Telephone Project
The Rural Telephone project (RTP) is a Micro Finance Scheme where rural and urban women, referred to as ‘Phone Ladies' are loaned money through Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs).

The objectives of the project are to provide first class GSM services in the rural and deep rural communities alleviate poverty and empower women .

So far the project has had a significant impact on the lives of the beneficiaries as well as their communities. It has been remarkable in achieving:

The project, called The Akede Project was launched in Ilorin, Kwara State in June 2004, with a total of 30 women involved in the project. It is the first of its kind in Nigeria. It involves training and equipping rural Women with equipment needed for them to start a call center in their community. The equipment includes: a handset, SIM pack, airtime, promotional materials (Umbrella, Banner, Wind vane, T-shirts and face caps), antennae and Battery pack.

The total cost of the equipment and airtime provided is converted into a loan given to the women through a Micro finance institution (MFI).

The women make monthly repayments of between N1, 000 – N2, 000 on the loan over a 10-month period. The repayments are used to extend the project to other rural women. Beneficiaries are also expected to pay a refundable insurance fee of N5,000 at the rate of N125 weekly as well as saving a least N100/ week. At the completion ceremony a number of the beneficiaries had been able to save N14,000 over the period. There were no defaults on the loan. 100% repayment.

Today the Rural Telephone project has 100 phone ladies in over 20 communities. The project currently runs in the following States: Enugu , Akwa Ibom, Edo and Kwara States

Looking ahead
In Phase two, which will commence soon, over 200 women in 70 communities, will benefit from this project. Over the next 5 years the project will be extended to over 3000 beneficiaries all over Nigeria.

Habitat Rural Housing project – The project is a 4-year project and will involve the construction of 600 low cost housing units in all the 6 geo-political States of Nigeria. Through volunteer labor and Funding from MTN Foundation, simple and decent houses will be built with the help of the homeowner family. The houses are sold to the families at no profit. The sale of the house is financed with an affordable, no-interest loan. The homeowners' monthly mortgage payments are used to build still more Habitat houses.

Cost of house is about N400, 000 the homeowner will have 7 – 10 years to pay this back. Repayments are tied to the price of cement; as such homeowners will repay about 2 bags of cement a month.

The total cost of the project over the 4-year period is about N600 Million.