News
20 million Nigerians benefitting from our cash transfer – FG
The Federal Government says over two million households in Nigeria are currently benefitting from its conditional cash transfer programme.
The government also said over 20 million persons were indirect beneficiaries of the programme in the two million households.
This came as it began partnership with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission,EFCC,the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission,ICPC and other relevant agencies to probe compliance level of the National Social Investment Programme,NSIP in states of the federation.
The National Coordinator of the National Social Investment Programmes, NSIP, Dr. Umar Bindir, speaking on Tuesday at the stakeholders’ meeting on state compliance check exercise of NSIP in Abuja, said, ”As we speak, we are now advancing cash transfer to two million households, these are houses of not individuals, so if you are approximately putting 10 people per household,you are talking about probably like 20 million or so people that we are handling.”
Bandir said the government was spending between N12 billion to N15 billion monthly.
“When you look at N-Power,we have a bill of possibly between N12 billion to 15 billion every month. And you can estimate that we have 510,000 now ongoing and we have the batch c for 490,000 coming on,so when you multiply the number of the graduates by N30,000 per month, you will get the figure,”he said.
He said government was injecting N12 billion and N14 billion every month into the funds for feeding school children.
He said, “If you look at the school feeding,you will see that we are feeding between nine to ten million children nationwide and each child on a schooling day is fed with N70 per meal,so again,when you do the arithmetic,you get something maybe between N12 billion and N14 billion every month in feeding these children during school every month.
“But the finances injected in summary,into the National Social Investment Programme,the recurrent alone is over N300 billion. That is not enough,that is less than possibly what is required, gauging against the number of poor and vulnerable we have in this country.
He said, ”We are beginning to see the multiply effects, people who have gotten credit and are now hiring one or more people, therefore,the employment generation is improving. The graduates,some of them are exiting and establishing their businesses.
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Dr Nasir Sani-Gwarzo, speaking at the event, said government had begun partnership with relevant agencies in carrying out the compliance check of the implementation guidelines “of all our programmes and to develop a standard and effective compliance check structure for the various NSIP assignments.”
The Permanent Secretary,who was represented by the Director, Special Needs, Mrs Nkechi Onwukwe, explained that,”Our primary goal is to meet the needs of the people who need a helping hand from Government to restore hope, provide support and succor, as well as an enabling environment for recovery, rehabilitation and social inclusion, while ensuring their human dignity is upheld at all times.”
The creation of the ministry,he explained, “was necessitated by the compelling need to harmonize, synergize, institutionalize, as well as provide coordination of all government’s humanitarian and social interventions.
“This is in line with the vision of Mr. President to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years.”
“The National Social Investment Programme, a social investment initiative aimed at tackling poverty across the country was launched, targeting “the poorest of the poor and the socially excluded members of the society.”
Speaking more on the event, he said, ”The activities of the Mmnistry constantly impact on the well-being of the indigent citizens and contributes to the socio-economic development of the country and in order for the ministry to effectively provide the desired and much needed coordination and leadership it was conceived to provide, it must have an effective and consistent means of appraising its activities.”
Sani-Gwarzo said since inception, the ministry had so far “achieved a lot in the area of the provision and effective coordination of humanitarian interventions in keeping with our mandate. “
“We have also been able to provide coordination through cooperation and partnerships with relevant government MDA’s, development partners, UN agencies and other strategic partners.
“This is all in a bid to ensure sustained and expanded social protection programmes, prompt emergency response services, and appropriately targeted humanitarian interventions,”he said.
Noting that,“The National Social Investment Programme,NSIP is the biggest social protection and poverty eradication programme ever put in place by any government in Nigeria and one of the biggest in Africa”,he explained that:”it was established by President Buhari in 2016 to address immediate and long-term socio-economic imbalances and inequalities, alleviate poverty, and stimulate accelerated economic growth.”
News
Yahaya Bello reports to EFCC office with lawyers
Yahaya Bello reports to EFCC office with lawyers
A former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, on Tuesday visited the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to honour another invitation extended to him over alleged misappropriation of funds.
Bello went to the anti-graft office with his lawyers in the morning.
The ex-Kogi governor reportedly drove himself to the EFCC’s office in a black Toyota Hilux van with some lawyers.
He was said to have been taken by some operatives of the agency and are currently being grilled.
This is coming after the Supreme Court judgment which dismissed a suit brought by some state governments challenging the constitutionality of the agency.
The EFCC at the last hearing on November 14, sought the adjournment till November 27 in the fresh case it instituted against Bello.
It stated that the 30-day window was still running for the summons earlier issued.
News
Just in: Ebonyi governor suspends two commissioners, Perm Sec for misconduct
Just in: Ebonyi governor suspends two commissioners, Perm Sec for misconduct
Ebonyi State Governor Francis Nwifuru has announced the immediate suspension of two commissioners with a permanent secretary among others for gross misconduct.
Those suspended are the Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development Francis Ori, and the Commissioner for Health, Moses Ekuma, with the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health.
The suspension followed an incident on Saturday night, when the governor reportedly visited the Ministry of Health’s premises and was said to have found six officials diverting government materials.
Others suspended for three months are the Executive Secretaries of the State Primary Healthcare Development Agency and the Ebonyi State Health Insurance Agency
The suspension order was announced by the state Commissioner for Information, Jude Okpor, who cited alleged misconduct and dereliction of duties as the reasons for the disciplinary actions.
Okpor made the disclosure on Tuesday during a press briefing on the outcomes of the State Executive Council meeting held on Monday at the New Government House in Abakaliki, the state capital.
“Following cases of gross misconduct and dereliction of duties by some government officials and matters related thereto, the Chairman of Council directed the indefinite suspension of the Honourable Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development and three months suspension of the Honourable Commissioner for Health, respectively
“In view of the development, the Special Assistant to the Governor on Primary Health was directed to take charge of the ministry in the absence of the suspended commissioner.
Governor Nwifuru directed the suspended government officials to hand over all government properties in their possession including vehicles to the Secretary to the State Government.
News
Why we’re borrowing despite surplus revenues – FG
Why we’re borrowing despite surplus revenues – FG
The Federal Government has defended its decision to borrow to address budget deficits, despite surpassing revenue targets in 2024.
Finance Minister Wale Edun and Budget Minister Atiku Bagudu clarified this position during a session with the National Assembly’s Joint Committee on Finance, Budget, and National Planning. The meeting focused on the 2025–2027 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP).
Last week, the National Assembly approved President Bola Tinubu’s $2.2 billion loan request to fund the N9.7 trillion deficit in the 2024 budget partially.
During the session, key agency heads, including Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) CEO Mele Kyari, Customs Comptroller-General Bashir Adeniyi, and Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Chairman Zacch Adedeji, presented their revenue reports.
The agencies reported exceeding their 2024 targets.
- Customs Service: Generated ₦5.352 trillion by September 30, surpassing its ₦5.09 trillion target for the year. For 2025, the agency projects ₦6.3 trillion, with a 10% increase planned for 2026.
- NNPCL: Achieved ₦13.1 trillion in revenue, exceeding the ₦12.3 trillion projection for 2024. Kyari announced a ₦23.7 trillion revenue target for 2025.
READ ALSO:
- Mixed reactions trail moves to privatise PH, Warri, Kaduna refineries
- Ronaldo’s brace propels Al Nassr toward AFC champions league quarters
- Nigeria would have been better under Peter Obi, too much nepotism under Tinubu – Senator Abaribe
- FIRS: Surpassed multiple tax collection goals, including ₦5.7 trillion from company income tax against a ₦4 trillion target. Education tax collections also exceeded expectations, reaching ₦1.5 trillion compared to a ₦70 billion target.
Overall, ₦18.5 trillion of the ₦19.4 trillion 2024 revenue target had been achieved by September, indicating the goal will be exceeded by year-end.
Despite these surpluses, the government insists borrowing remains essential to cover budget gaps and support vulnerable populations.
Bagudu explained, “Even with agencies exceeding revenue targets, borrowing is necessary to address deficits and boost productivity, particularly for the poorest. This aligns with Agenda 2050, which aims for a GDP per capita of $33,000.”
Edun also reiterated that loans were critical for adequately funding the budget.
The committee, led by Senator Sani Musa, questioned the rationale behind the borrowing and demanded further transparency. The Immigration Service was specifically asked to provide documents regarding an “unacceptable PPP arrangement” before the end of the week.
The session underscored the government’s balancing act between increased revenues and fiscal challenges requiring external borrowing.
Why we’re borrowing despite surplus revenues – FG
-
metro11 hours agoBREAKING: Port Harcourt refinery begins operation
-
Business2 days agoJust in: Dangote refinery reduces petrol price for marketers
-
metro1 day ago40-foot container falls on car in Lagos
-
Politics2 days ago2027: Lagos Speaker, Obasa joins gov race, may battle Seyi Tinubu, others
-
Politics1 day agoLagos 2027: Seyi Tinubu campaign team releases his life documentary
-
International1 day agoTrump to sack 15,000 transgender officers from U.S. military: Report
-
Entertainment1 day agoPolygamy best form of marriage for Africa – Okey Bakassi
-
metro1 day agoPolicewoman dismissed in Edo threatens to kill children, commit suicide