1,000 Warri Businesses Get ₦300,000 Grants

No fewer than 1,000 small business owners in Warri and surrounding communities have received ₦300,000 business grants from the Okpeyo Temile Foundation (OTF) under its 2026 Business Support Grant (BSG), as part of efforts to stimulate grassroots enterprise and improve livelihoods.

The beneficiaries were formally onboarded on Tuesday, during the Foundation’s second beneficiaries’ workshop in Warri, Delta State, where another set of vulnerable residents under the Support for Subsistence Living Programme (SSLP) were also enrolled to receive ₦50,000 monthly stipends for six months.

In a goodwill message, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Alfred Temile, said the intervention was designed to provide more than financial support by equipping beneficiaries with practical skills to build sustainable businesses.

The message, read by the Foundation’s Project Coordinator, Omasan Eyikimiaghan, noted that about 80 per cent of this year’s 1,500 beneficiaries were drawn from the Foundation’s host communities, reflecting its commitment to driving local economic growth.

He added that the Foundation received an overwhelming number of applications and that beneficiaries emerged through a transparent, fair and merit-based selection process.

Another of the project’s facilitators, Esther Ejejigbe, urged the SSLP beneficiaries to judiciously use the monthly stipend for the scheduled duration.

During the onboarding workshop, business development facilitator, Dr. Rachael Misan-Ruppee, trained participants on record-keeping, customer service, low-cost marketing strategies, savings culture and business planning.

She urged beneficiaries to develop sound business management habits, stressing that access to funding alone would not guarantee success.

The interactive session also featured contributions from beneficiaries, who all expressed gratitude for the gesture.