The World Bank Country Director, Shubham Chaudhuri has announced that the $800 million palliative will be disbursed soon.
Chanduri revealed this to Betta Edu the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation (FMHAPA) at the bank’s headquarters in Abuja.
He said “The proposed disbursement of $800m for the Social Safety Nets Project will commence soonest.
“We will support the verification and scaling up of the National Social Register (NSR), provide technical support in the preparation of the Ministry to attend UNGA, and give specialized backing for the establishment of the Trust Fund”
The decision to support the minister, was a show of commitment after Chaudhuri pledged to provide all the needed support for the new minister to deliver on the new mandate of the ministry during her visit.
Edu’s visit to the bank was to inform that the Federal Government will fund 15 million households through the Conditional Cash Transfer(CCT).
A CCT is a government initiative aimed at reducing poverty by making welfare programs conditional upon the receivers’ actions.
In a statement signed by the Deputy Director, Information FMHAPA Rhoda Ishaku Iliya on Thursday, Edu reminded the World Bank team of President Bola Tinubu’s direct focus on the people and lifting them out of poverty.
She said, “The Federal Government of Nigeria is set to cover no fewer than fifteen million households under its updated social safety net project tagged Conditional Cash Transfer.
“The flexibility of the World Bank to accommodate the re-focused agenda of the Ministry to eliminate poverty is a welcome development.
“The ministry is preparing to host the Humanitarian Dialogue as well as the creation of the Renewed Hope Humanitarian and Poverty Alleviation Trust Fund (HPATF).
“The Trust Fund is expected to come from federal government budgetary provision and allocation, development partners, international community, taxes, private sector contribution among others.
“The Ministry needs the support of the World Bank to verify and expand the National Social Register (NSR) and offer your technical support to work with the Ministry to achieve Mr President’s target.”