Citizens Center for Integrated Development and Social Rights (CCIDESOR) as the Third Party Monitor (TPM) of the Federal Government/Worldbank Supported National Social Safety Nets Projects (NASSP) has commended the federal government for its effort in addressing the high rate of poverty in the country.
The essence of the monitoring was to ascertain the effectiveness of the Poor and Vulnerable Households of the NASSP process among the beneficiaries and the knowledge of the beneficiaries on the intention of the program which is to reduce the level of poverty in the country using the Household Uplifting Program(HUP).
The Government of Nigeria realizes the urgency required to turn the tide of poverty and vulnerability in the country and has recently taken important steps to set up the foundations of a national social protection policy in support of the pro-poor agenda. A social protection coordinating platform has been set up in the Office of the President to provide oversight to all social safety net interventions at Federal and State level and a Social Register of poor and vulnerable households has been established at the State and National level.
As part of a social investment program, the government has increased the budget allocated to social protection programs at the Federal level, and preliminary foundations are being laid out for the establishment of an electronic national ID system. Despite these efforts, major challenges remain. Nigeria spends less on social protection than every other lower-middle income country and most of its regional peers. Instead its fiscal space is taken up by subsidies. The limited amount of social protection programs that do exist suffer from low coverage, weak targeting, and is devoid of any linkages to productive opportunities for its large and growing youth population.
CCIDESOR will continue to monitor to ensure that the intention of the federal government in the elimination of poverty is achieved especially in Anambra State of Southeast where the organization is serving as Third Party Monitor. The capacity of CCIDESOR having understood the peculiarities of the state and others has facilitated the effort of the federal government
