Betta Edu, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, has announced plans by the Federal Government to commence a new cash distribution initiative for fifteen million Nigerians by October.
Edu disclosed this during an interview on Arise TV on Monday.
Edu was answering questions about the Federal Government’s participation in the 78th United Nations General Assembly, UNGA, and what it means for Nigerians.
“We had meetings with the World Bank, and very soon we will announce the launch of the National Safety Net Programme, which will put funds in the pockets of over 15 million households in Nigeria, she said.
“These are tangible funds that people can use to start businesses and improve their lives. This will be happening next month, in October,” she added.
She also stated that the federal government will work with state governments and local communities to verify the National Social Register.
The minister added, “I’m sure you know very well that we have sent out a team and are in engagement with the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) just to verify the National Social Register working with the states and local communities, and we are going to expand it.
“Right now, we have 15.7 million households, which amounts to about 62 million people under the National Social Register. We want to verify if they are still in that social bracket to know if they still deserve such interventions.
“The President has approved the verification and expansion of the National Social Register to cover everybody in that bracket.”
