FG Plans Cash Transfer Scheme for 75m Nigerians To Cushion Hardship

The Federal Government said it has concluded plans to provide direct payment of the suspended social investment programme 75 million Nigerians in 50 million households to reduce the suffering of citizens.

The Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, announced this at the ministerial sectoral briefing to mark the first year in office of the President Bola Tinubu administration in Abuja.

Recall that Tinubu suspended all the programmes administered by the National Social Investment Programme Agency for six weeks, as part of a probe of alleged malfeasance in the management of the agency and the scheme.

The president also suspended Betta Edu as the minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation on January 8. Edu’s ministry supervises the operations of the NSIPA.

To revamp the programme, Tinubu approved the establishment of a Special Presidential Panel, led by Edun to carry out an intensive review and audit of the existing financial frameworks and policy guidelines of the social investment programmes.

Edun said, “I am duty-bound to give you an overview of the strategy, policies, and implementation of Mr President’s reform programme. Immediately upon assuming office, Mr President launched macroeconomic reforms to restore stability to the Nigerian economy, including subsidy reforms and foreign exchange market reforms. These reforms caused a spike in costs for individuals and businesses, but Mr President is committed to counterbalancing the negative effects with interventions across the social spectrum.

“The government has restarted the social investment program, providing direct payments to 75 million Nigerians in 50 million households. Access to credit has been improved, with N1bn allocated to consumer credit and grants of 50,000 Naira being given to 1 million nano industries.”

The National Bureau of Statistics in its April CPI report, said Nigeria’s 33.69 per cent inflation rate was largely driven by food inflation which stood at 40.53 per cent in April, 2024.

But, the minister said with 30 per cent of the world affected by issues of food security, agriculture would play a critical role in addressing global food insecurity.

He stated, “Food security is a worldwide issue, affecting 30 per cent of the world’s active population, and Nigeria is no exception. As I mentioned earlier, agriculture is critical, and success in this area is crucial. Efforts are being redoubled, with N200bn provided by the Ministry of Finance towards an intervention program.

“Just today (Tuesday), we met with the social investment prudential panel and development partners to discuss the President’s emergency plan for food security. We talked about advancing this issue and providing food, nutrition, and security, and this area will receive more attention in the coming weeks. The economy is growing at 2.98 per cent in the first quarter of this year, higher than the population growth rate and last year’s growth rate. Agriculture has the potential to help move the economy forward and reduce inflation.”