A Professor of Labour and Industrial Relations, Abel Oludele Adigun, and a legal practitioner, Chief Bola Abimbola Ige, yesterday called on government to pay attention to human capital in the grassroots so as to attain an aggregate national development.

They made the call during the Oluponna Economic Development and Empowerment programme organised by Oluponna Home and Diaspora Forum at Oluponna Town Hall, Ayedire Council in Osun State.

The empowerment is the second phase in the series of the interest-free loan for businesswomen in the town. The first phase was done in August last year. Fifty-one beneficiaries were given N20, 000 each, while three got N30, 000 each.

While Adigun stressed that for any country to develop, serious attention must be given to grassroots development, Ige said the development of the town must be paramount to all.

Adigun, who is a former Dean, Faculty of Humanities, Management and Social Sciences, Kings University, Odeomu, Osun State, said, “it has been my concern that we found ways of developing the grassroots. We cannot develop the grassroots without first of all developing the people within that zone. That is why this particular programme is very important. Our attention has to be directed now to developing the people in the grassroots. For any nation to develop, it has to take its human capital development very serious. We say in labour movement that human is contributing agent in production, which means that our attention has to be directed on that agent of production, if we really want a meaningful development both at the grassroots and even in Nigeria as a whole. We have to know that the aggregate of the grassroots development will affect the national development. So, we have to focus on developing the human capital in the grassroots. The women selling foodstuffs, pepper and other small small business owners are part of human capital. It is not only those who engage in a white or blue collar jobs.”

Ige, on his part, said: “I want to advise the government of the day to empower the youths. It is through empowerment of the youths they can make impacts in the society and grassroots and for the development of their towns.”

Chairman, Oluponna Home and Diaspora, Mr. Sabitu Mutiu, urged the beneficiaries to use the money judiciously. He disclosed that the beneficiaries who are faithful in repayment would graduate to access N30, 000 facility.

The Chairman of Economic and Empowerment Committee of Oluponna Home and Diaspora Forum, Prince Ayo Oyedokun, said the programme is a way of helping the community and to stop throat-cutting credit facilities. He solicited the cooperation of the beneficiaries in order to sustain the programme.

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