A Stakeholder in Nigeria, Mr Walter Ugwuocha says the National Social Register (NSR) is a key instrument in the government’s efforts to address poverty in the country.
Mr Ugwuocha who spoke on behalf of the Civil Society Organisations (CSO) Third Party Monitors of the National Civil Society Forum Centre for Health Education Economic Rehabilitation and Social Security (CHEERS) in Abuja urged the federal government and state governors not to discard the NSR as it would be counter-productive to Nigeria’s poverty reduction efforts
He expressed concern and surprise regarding the announcement by the National Economic Council to jettison the National Social Register adding that the NSR is a dependable tool for delivering social assistance programs
Mr Ugwuocha, therefore, urged the government to reconsider the decision.
He pointed out that significant resources was invested by development partners, including the World Bank, in supporting the development of the NSR.
Mr Ugwuocha advised the National Economic Council to engage with and leverage the National Social Register to implement social assistance programs effectively and lift millions out of poverty.
He highlighted the use of technology to verify beneficiaries on NSR and presented the results of the NSR/ the National Social Safety Net Program (NASSP) verification conducted by CSO Third Party Monitors (TPM).
Mr Ugwuocha explained the TPM’s use of an electronic-based Open Data Kit (ODK) and GPS coordinates to interview and verify sampled beneficiaries.
“It describes the process of scanning barcodes embedded with household information to validate beneficiaries.
“The TPM data collation was household-based and GPS tagged to ensure accuracy and adherence to international standards.”
According to him, the findings of the TPM indicated that 1,112,723 beneficiaries (98.5 per cent of sampled beneficiaries) were verified and received cash transfers.
“It also highlights the reasons for non-payment of cash to some beneficiaries, attributed to logistics challenges faced by program implementers. The compliance with guidelines for the identification of poor and vulnerable households was found to be 90 per cent with successful community sensitization and engagement.”
PIAK
