Nigeria’s President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu has flagged off the Renewed Hope Conditional Cash Transfer programme targeted at uplifting 15 million poor and vulnerable Nigerians.
Symbolically launching the program at the State House on Tuesday on the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, the President said that the conditional cash transfer is an immediate intervention to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal and other economic shocks on the vulnerable groups of society.
The Nigerian President was represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume.
As promised by the Nigerian President in his Independence Day speech that the programme will commence in October as part of his administration’s plan to reduce poverty, President Tinubu matched his words with action by deploying the social safety net program to strengthen his 8-point agenda of food security, ending hunger, poverty eradication, economic growth and job creation.
The President stated that his administration has strategized through several means to fight poverty and help the most vulnerable members of Nigeria.
The Nigerian Leader reeled out the steps which included the expansion of the National Social Register to capture Nigerians living below one dollar per day, restructuring the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs on Poverty Alleviation and providing the policy framework for aggressive poverty alleviation drive in Nigeria.
Others include the development of the Renewed Hope Agenda for Humanitarian Response and Poverty Alleviation which is a 7-year roadmap for Poverty Alleviation in Nigeria.
President Tinubu added that the theme of this year’s International Day for The Eradication of Poverty; ‘Decent Work and Social Protection: Putting Dignity in Practice for All’ aligns with his Renewed Hope agenda.
“My government will lead from the front in seeking to ensure that all Nigerians have opportunities for dignified work and sustained social protection,” the President said.
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Betta Edu disclosed that the social safety net involves the disbursement of N25,000 Naira to 15 million households for three months.
Edu further explained that the 15 million households will receive 75,000 Naira each over a space of three months.
She elaborated that the verification process has been ongoing for the past three weeks, during which individuals on the list have undergone verification processes that include biometric checks, confirmation of their NIN (National Identification Number), as well as other in-person verification methods at household locations to confirm their eligibility.
The Minister also mentioned plans to extend the register’s coverage to include vulnerable pensioners, veterans, and widows of fallen heroes, and address other areas of concern where full inclusion was lacking.
“Our President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has resolved that Nigerians would have both immediate short-term, medium-term or long-term interventions to cushion not just the effect of force subsidy or any economic shock but to ensure that we can pull Nigerians out of poverty while preventing mitigating against the humanitarian crisis that has led lots of Nigerians into being displaced or living below the poverty line” Edu added.
Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of Economy, Mr. Wale Edun said the 63% statistics of Nigerians living in poverty, representing 84million Nigerians is unacceptable to President Bola Tinubu
“Clearly to Mr. President, it is unacceptable as it is to the rest of us. And that is why it is perhaps his number one priority, tackling poverty and he has a program to stabilize the economy and grow the economy in general.
Mr. Edun added that the cash transfer program will help reduce poverty in a significant ways.
The World Bank country representative, Shubham Chaudhuri confirmed that cash transfers are a method widely acknowledged and universally accepted.
Chaudhuri stressed that the method has proven to be one of the most effective ways to assist citizens, particularly the impoverished and vulnerable who have been impacted by economic shocks or rising living costs.
“This aid is crucial in helping them overcome the initial period during which they might otherwise be compelled to make decisions with long-term consequences. For instance, these decisions might include reducing daily meals to just one or withdrawing their children from school. The type of cash transfer referred to as “shock-responsive cash transfer” that is currently being implemented is utilized by countries worldwide to offer temporary relief in such situations.”
The Beneficiaries present at the flag off were, Larai Suleiman, Shuaibu Hassana, Sariki Bala Gamu, Okor Jonah and Hameed Kosemani Isiaka.
The Renewed Hope Conditional Cash Transfer programme to 15 Million Households will cost the Federal government the sum of one trillion, one hundred and twenty-five billion naira.
