President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has launched the Renewed Hope Conditional Cash Transfer for 15 million households in the country as part of his move to alleviate the impact of fuel subsidy removal and tackle economic shocks.
The event, which was held at the Press Gallery of the State House in Abuja also marked the celebration of the International Day for the eradication of poverty
President Tinubu who was represented by Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, said the occasion was significant for Nigeria and for his administration as it presented him the opportunity to restate his administration’s commitment to poverty alleviation as expressed in his 8-point Agenda.
He noted that his government’s plans for food security, ending hunger, poverty eradication, economic growth and job creation were all means to fight poverty and help the most vulnerable members of our society, outlining the steps government had already taken.
Some of the attendees were; the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Eradication, Betta Edu; Minister Of Finance, Wale Edun; World Bank Country Director, Shubham Chaudhuri; and the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator For Nigeria, Matthias Schmale; among other dignitaries.
Bring to mind that the President had in his maiden Independence Day broadcast to Nigerians on October 1, 2023 announced the cash transfer programme which he said would target vulnerable citizens.
As maintained by the humanitarian affairs minister, the 15 million households represents 62 million Nigerians.
Edu said that the sum of N25,000 would be transferred to the beneficiaries on a monthly basis for three months, which amounts to N75,000 for each of the beneficiaries.
The minister also disclosed that in no distant time, another scheme would be launched, code-named ‘Iya Loja Funds’ which would provide soft loans of N50,000 to support petty traders.
In addition, at the beginning of the next farming season, she said that farmers would be provided with incentives to boost their farm yields.
The Country Director of the World Bank, Chaudhuri, pledged his organisation’s support to the scheme.
Also, the finance minister said a biometric auditing system would be put in place to ensure efficiency and accountability in the disbursement of the funds to beneficiaries.
|The Guardián
