Lara Adejoro
Civil Society Organisations engaged as third-party monitors for National Social Safety Net Programme have warned the Federal and State Governments against jettisoning the use of the National Social Register.
The NSR comprises names of vulnerable people and households across the country created for the purpose of cash transfer and other social investment programmes.
The National Economic Council last Thursday, dumped the NSR of the former president, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), opting for a new social register to be developed by each state of the federation.
NASSP, however, said jettisoning the register would be counter-productive to Nigeria’s poverty reduction efforts.
In a statement by the Head, National TPM Civil Society Forum Centre for Health Education Economic Rehabilitation and Social Security, Dr. Walter Ugwuocha, said that technology was employed to verify beneficiaries on the NSR, using GPS coordinates and barcodes for data validation and collation for households.
“The TPM data collation was household-based and GPS tagged to ensure accuracy and adherence to international standards,” he said.
According to him, the findings of the TPM indicated that 1,112,723 beneficiaries (98.5 per cent of sampled beneficiaries) were verified and received cash transfers.
“It also highlights the reasons for non-payment of cash to some beneficiaries, attributing it to logistics challenges faced by programme implementers.
“The compliance with guidelines for the identification of poor and vulnerable households was found to be 90 per cent with successful community sensitization and engagement,” he added.
Dr. Ugwuocha expressed concern and surprise regarding the announcement by the National Economic Council to jettison the register.
He pointed out that significant resources were invested by development partners, including the World Bank, in supporting the development of the NSR.
However, he urged the NEC to engage and leverage the National Social Register to implement social assistance programs effectively and lift millions out of poverty.
He reiterated that the NSR is a key instrument in the government’s efforts to address poverty in the country.
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