Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, disclosed this in Abuja, noting that the intervention is part of President Bola Tinubu’s strategy to cushion the impact of subsidy removal and exchange rate reforms on the poorest Nigerians.
About 19.7 million poor and vulnerable households—representing more than 70 million individuals—are captured in the National Social Register. The cash transfers, funded from an $800 million World Bank facility, are being disbursed to 15 million households.
So far, 8.5 million households have received at least one tranche of ₦25,000, with some receiving two or three payments. The remaining 7 million households will be paid before the end of the year.
Edun stressed that the programme is anchored on a robust and sustainable system, with beneficiaries verified through their National Identity Numbers (NIN) and payments made digitally via bank accounts or mobile wallets.
He explained that the programme would be provisioned in the annual federal budget to ensure long-term sustainability, stating, “We now have the basis for a modern social protection system that can provide targeted assistance to the poorest and most vulnerable on a long-term basis.”
The National Coordinator of NASSCO, Mrs. Funmi Olotu, clarified that the staggered payments were due to President Tinubu’s insistence on linking disbursements to NIN to ensure transparency. She emphasized that all transfers are now direct debits to bank accounts, eliminating traditional cash payments.
Olotu added that the National Social Register, developed with the World Bank, was built on over 40 socioeconomic variables and remains free from political interference.
While the previous administration planned ₦5,000 monthly payments for six months, the Tinubu administration redesigned the scheme to provide ₦25,000 monthly for three months.