We will give Nigerians decent work, sustained social protection
- N25,000 cash transfer begins
The 84 million Nigerians living in poverty is unacceptable to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, said yesterday.
The situation makes ending poverty a priority for the Administration, he added.
The minister hopes the N25,000 conditional cash transfer to 15 million households, which began yesterday, will help address the problem for the most vulnerable in the short term.
President Tinubu launched the Renewed Hope Conditional Cash Transfer initiative at the Presidential Villa.
For three months, 15 million poor households nationwide will receive N25,000 cash support, for which N1.125 trillion has been provided.
It targets over 61 million vulnerable Nigerians and is designed to cushion the petrol subsidy removal pain.
The take-off of the programme coincided with this year’s International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.
Among the initial beneficiaries, who were presented with cheques at the ceremony, were Larai Suleiman, Shuaibu Hassana, Sariki Bala Gamu, Okor Jonah and Hameed Isiaka.
Edun said: “It (the number of poor Nigerians) is totally unacceptable to the President as it is to the rest of us.
“That is why it is perhaps his number one priority to tackle poverty and he has a programme to stabilise and grow the economy in general.”
Nigeria’s population is estimated at over 225 million, according to Worldometer, which provides real-time world statistics.
President Tinubu, represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, restated his Administration’s commitment to poverty alleviation.
He said the theme of this year’s poverty eradication day: “Decent work and social protection: Putting dignity in practice for all,” aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda.
The President said: “Today is a significant day for us in Nigeria and for my administration for it brings with it an opportunity for me to restate my administration’s commitment to poverty alleviation as expressed in my eight-point agenda.
“My government will lead from the front in seeking to ensure that all Nigerians have opportunities decent for dignified work and sustained social protection.
“It is only via a sustained collaborative approach that we can win this war against poverty in Nigeria and the world at large. Hope is here.
“I ask the Nigerian people to please ensure that they key into all the available programmes because they are here to help.
“Our objective is to lift millions of Nigerians out of poverty.
“Yet, this will only be possible with the cooperation of the people we seek to help. Let us continue to work together to achieve our collective goal of eradicating poverty in Nigeria.”
Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr Betta Edu, believes it would amount to sitting on a keg of gunpowder to ignore poverty.
According to her, the N75,000, which each household will receive for three months, can form the capital for some small-scale businesses.
She said: “Beyond this, the government will be providing low-cost shelter for the poor and internally displaced persons
