5.5 Million Nigerians Now Benefit From Cash Transfers, Says FG

• The federal government says 5.5 million Nigerians have so far benefited from its conditional cash transfer programme, as it intensifies reforms to strengthen the nation’s social protection system.

The federal government has announced new strides in expanding Nigeria’s social protection framework, revealing that 5.5 million Nigerians have benefited from its conditional cash transfer programme aimed at reducing poverty and vulnerability nationwide.

The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Bernard Doro, made this known yesterday in Abuja at the inaugural national steering committee meeting of ACT Naija, organised by the Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ).
Doro was represented by his Special Adviser, Abimbola Fashanu.

He said the government is strengthening social protection through multiple institutions, including the National Social Investment Programme Agency, the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and IDPs, the National Senior Citizens Centre, and the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities.

“Under the Renewed Hope Agenda, programmes such as Conditional Cash Transfers, the Grant for Vulnerable Groups, N-Power, GEEP, Home-Grown School Feeding, and the National Social Safety-Net Coordination remain central to supporting vulnerable households,” he stated.

The minister noted that 19.7 million households are now verified in the National Social Register, with 5.5 million currently receiving cash transfers, while microcredit schemes have reached over 5 million Nigerians across all LGAs.

He further disclosed that zonal consultations for updating the national social protection policy have been completed in the South-West, North-Central, North-West, and North-East, with the South-East and South-South sessions scheduled for completion before the end of November 2025.

Doro also revealed that the ministry recently concluded its Skill-to-Wealth Programme, which trained unemployed youths in solar installation, greenhouse agriculture, and automobile engineering.

Work, he added, is underway on a shock-responsive social protection framework supported by the World Food Programme (WFP), designed to improve Nigeria’s capacity to respond to pandemics, climate shocks, displacement, and economic crises.

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He explained that a draft Shock Responsive Social Protection (SRSP) Standard Operating Procedure has already been developed with the WFP and will be validated by stakeholders before adoption.

Earlier, ANEEJ Executive Director David Ugolor described the meeting as a “significant milestone” in strengthening Nigeria’s social protection system and ensuring no citizen is left behind.

He said the ACT Naija Project serves as a collaborative platform bringing together government agencies, civil society organisations, and development partners to promote sustainable and accountable social protection delivery nationwide.

Ugolor added that the minister’s presence reaffirms the federal government’s commitment to poverty reduction and improved social inclusion.