FG Says Almost 2 Million Nigerians Get N5,000 Monthly as Poverty Alleviation

FG Says Almost 2 Million Nigerians Get N5,000 Monthly as Poverty Alleviation

  • About 1.9 million Nigerians are getting N5,000 as a monthly stipend from the Federal government
  • The money is to aid them in alleviating poverty under the Social-National Investment scheme
  • Saidya Farouq said there are other poverty-fighting programmes by the federal government in the country

PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ click on “Recommended for you” and enjoy!

The Nigerian government says about 1.94 million Nigerians are getting N5,000 cash monthly as part of the national cash transfer scheme for vulnerable people.

The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq, disclosed this at a one-day retreat on national social development organized by the Senate Committee on social duties.

FG, poverty alleviation
The minister of humanitarian Affairs, Social Development, and Disaster Management, Sadiya Farouq Credit: poco_bw
Source: Getty Images

Types of poverty alleviation schemes by the federal government

Nasir Gwarzo, Permanent Secretary in the ministry, represented the Minister.

PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ find the “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy!

Read also

French court dismisses case against TotalEnergies E. Africa oil project 

TheCable reports that Farouq stated that the aim of the national social investment programme establishment bill was to give statutory and institutional backing for the implementation of the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP).

The Minister said President Buhari founded the NSIP in 2016 to manage social and economic inequalities, including poverty alleviation among Nigerians.

According to the Minister, four social support schemes are in place to help vulnerable Nigerians achieve acceptable living standards.

She noted that NSIP impacted Nigerians directly and indirectly through the four cluster programmes:

  • N-Power
  • Government Enterprise and Empowerment (GEEP)
  • The national home-grown school feeding scheme
  • The conditional cash transfer initiative

The Minister said:

“Any law does not back the NSIP, which is a non-contributory social protection scheme, and this underscores the need for it to have a piece of legislation.

Other social intervention schemes by FG

Farouq stated that the NSIP began in 2015. About one million Nigerian youths have benefitted via the N-Power scheme, and an additional 500,000 are currently going through various skill acquisition schemes under the initiative.

Read also

5 Implications of Prolonged Naira Scarcity on Nigeria's Economy

She said:

“The cash transfer has enrolled 1,975,381 poor and vulnerable households from the national social register into a national beneficiary register [NBR]. The NBR alone has 9,841,700 household individuals in the 36 states of the federation.
“The cash transfer supports the poor and vulnerable to improve consumption and develop savings skills to reduce the poverty line and build their resilience to withstand shocks.
“A total of 1,940,004 beneficiaries are currently receiving cash transfers each month. Public primary schools nationwide have witnessed unprecedented new enrollments due to the national home-grown school feeding programme.
“The programme is feeding 10 million pupils in over 66,000 public schools across Nigeria. The programme is gradually reducing cases of out-of-school children nationwide.

CBN asks FG to use eNaira to transfer N368.8 billion to Nigerians

Recall that Legit.ng reported that the Central Bank of Nigeria had pitched the eNaira to the federal government as the best alternative for sharing $800 million, about N368.8 billion, in its National Social Safety Net Programme Scale Up.

Read also

2023 elections: EFCC intercepts N32.4m meant for vote-buying in Lagos

The pitch by the CBN is an effort to drive and strengthen its cashless policy.

The pitch was contained in CBN’s National Fintech Strategy document.

Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Pascal Oparada avatar

Pascal Oparada (Business editor) Pascal Oparada is a Mass Communications Graduate from Yaba College of Technology with over 10 years of experience in journalism. He has worked in reputable media organizations such as Daily Independent, TheNiche newspaper, and the Nigerian Xpress. He is a 2018 PwC Media Excellence Award winner. Email:pascal.oparada@corp.legit.ng