Federal Government on Monday expressed its readiness to expand its National Social Investment Programmes (NSIPs) with the view to accommodate additional five million primary school pupils, traders, graduates, farmers, among other vulnerable groups into the social safety net.
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq disclosed this in Abuja, at the opening ceremony of the 4th Annual Review of the National Home Grown School Feeding Programme (NHGSFP), during which the Abia State Focal Person on National Homegrown School Feeding Programme, Mr Chinenye Nwaogu, described the recruitment process of cooks as transparent.
“Since the programmes were transferred to the ministry, we have had continuous engagements with all state programme officials and have assigned desk officers to each of the clusters within the ministry, whom you have been liaising with for many months.
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“We have continued to engage and collaborate with state governors on the implementation of the programmes. The ministry is also working with federal and state MDAs, INGOs and NGOs to evolve policies that would support the institutionalisation of the social investment programs in the nation.
“We have restructured the GEEP program and other NSIPs to align them with our mandate of providing fair focused social inclusion programmes to the vulnerable in Nigeria.
“Furthermore, the FCT has been included in the school feeding programme, while Kwara State is set to commence feeding in a few months time. The NHGSFP will soon launch a capacity building exercise for vendors and enumeration of all beneficiaries on the programme.
“Plans have been concluded for the exit and transition of the N-Power Batch A & B through the creation of the NEXIT portal, which would allow those who choose, to sign up to access other government empowerment opportunities.
“A beneficiary management system for the NSIPs is expected to be deployed in 2021, which would have the capacity to manage payments, address grievances and improve the dissemination of information.
“Additionally, you are aware that Mr President has approved the expansion of the NSIPs, as part of his vision to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in the next 10 years. Thus the NHGSFP is to reach an additional five million pupils including children in non-conventional educational settings.
“The N-Power programme is to create jobs for a total of one million beneficiaries, while the GEEP program will provide loans to an additional one million traders, farmers and market people.
“The social register is also being expanded to accommodate an additional one million households. We have also launched the rural women grant, which will reach women in 36 States of the Federation and the FCT.
“As part of the Economic Sustainability Plan, the Shock Responsive Social Register is to be launched, which would provide grants funds to one million identified vulnerable persons in urban areas.
