FG dumps Buhari’s social investment register over lack of credibility

The National Economic Council (NEC) on Thursday dumped the national social register for lack of credibility.

The social register put in place during former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration is a repository of information about potential beneficiaries for multiple social assistance programmes initiated by the government.

The decision was taken at a meeting held at the Council Chambers of the State House in Abuja and presided over by Vice President Kashim Shettima.

The meeting was attended by governors of the 36 states, stakeholders from the World Bank, and other agencies of government.

Speaking with journalists, Chukwuma Soludo, governor of Anambra, said NEC agreed that states should come up with their own registers using formal and informal means.

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He added that all beneficiaries will be easily identified at the subnational level.

“We need to face the problem of the fact that we don’t have a credible register,” he said.

The Anambra governor said NEC deliberated on ways to cushion the impact of the recent removal of the petrol subsidy.

He added that the council agreed on the need for payment of outstanding liabilities of public servants, including pensions and gratuities, to alleviate their hardships.

According to Soludo, the council also agreed that the government will focus on funding micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) with single-digit interest rates to support business growth.

The council proposed the implementation of a cash transfer programme for states based on their peculiarities and a cash reward policy for public servants for six months.

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The gathering also agreed on the distribution of food items grains and fertilisers by state governments at the rate acquired from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) as part of measures to cushion the effects of subsidy removal on Nigerians.

In 2016, the federal government established the national social investments programme (NSIP) to “tackle poverty and hunger” across the country.

For the take-off of the programme, the government had directed the immediate release of N25 billion.

For its implementation, a national social register was created, comprising names of poor people and households across the country.