Beneficiaries of government’s cash transfer programme have saved over N500 million from their monthly stipend to start their own businesses. They receive N5,000 monthly.
Special Adviser to the President on Social Investment, Mrs Maryam Uwais who made this disclosure at a mentorship programme designed to groom future leaders in Nigeria said “the cash transfer programme goes beyond cash payments, as community facilitators, who are staff within the LGAs, are trained to visit them every week, to teach them how to form savings groups, life skills, sanitation, nutrition and hygiene.”
She then added that “due to the fact that the mentoring and support is embedded within the communities, we have confirmed that these beneficiaries have so far saved over N500 million, and are investing their energy and monies in productive activities such as farming, animal husbandry, poultry farming and rehabilitating community infrastructure”
To sustain this passion among beneficiaries, the federal government she said has started developing a Social Register in each State of the federation (and the FCT) to identify the socio-economic needs of the people.
The Social Register will identify the needs of Nigerian communities based on their circumstances and peculiarities.
A statement issued on Sunday by the National Social Investment Office NSIO noted that “the process of developing a reliable Social Register in each State of the federation (and the FCT) is ongoing, and well-trained people are being sent to the various communities to identify the socio-economic needs of the people based on their circumstances and peculiarities.”
Uwais assured future beneficiaries of government’s social investment programme “of a level playing field for all Nigerians in the execution of the Social intervention Programmes (SIPs) of the Federal Government.”
She said “structures have since been put in place to ensure that those who benefit from the various components of the social intervention programmes are captured based on merit.”
According to her, “gone are the days when a privileged few in the society benefited from a government empowerment initiative designed to reach out to the poor.”
“All applicants are encouraged to engage with the processes in place if they need a job. The programmes are open to everybody. You don’t need to know anybody to get enrolled into N-Power, for instance. Same procedure applies to the cash transfer program and other components. We have done similar programmes in the past but such efforts were not as effective because the drivers at the time did not establish mechanisms and structures that aim at targeting the poorest of the poor” she said.
Mrs Uwais noted that “for the first time in a long while, a government in Nigeria has consistently budgeted definite amounts of money for its poor and vulnerable citizens, irrespective of their party affiliations and ethno-religious differences.”
According to her, “Poverty doesn’t know culture, party affiliation; it doesn’t know ethnicity or religion. Majority of Nigerians who are poor don’t even have voters card or know what is happening in the political circles. But government has a responsibility to each and every one of them.”
