President Bola Tinubu has approved N32.7 billion for the implementation of the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP), which aims to assist needy communities throughout Nigeria.
Nentawe Yilwata, minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, announced the clearance on Friday during the inauguration of the state action plan for long-term solutions for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Makurdi, Benue state.
Tinubu stopped all projects run by the National Social Investment projects Agency (NSIPA) on January 12, 2024, as part of an investigation into alleged agency and programme mismanagement.
However, on December 3, 2024, the House of Representatives requested that the president direct Wale Edun, Minister of Finance, to unfreeze all accounts of the NSIP agency within 72 hours.
NSIPA is in charge of the social investment programme.
Speaking at the ceremony, Yilwata stated that the permission is consistent with the president’s renewed hope program, which prioritises the welfare of the country’s most disadvantaged communities.
He stated that the cash will be released as non-collateral, interest-free loans to poor Nigerians, particularly women and youth, through cooperatives.
Yilwata encouraged Nigerians to form cooperatives to benefit from the plan.
“We will give you between N300,000 and N400,000 as household loans. So, if you have a cooperative of 20 people, for example, then it means you have N300,000 multiplied by 20, that’s six million naira,” Yilwata said.
“We also have the N-Power, which the president has asked us to redirect. We should reform it and make them more productive.
“We should link the youth, not just by training them alone, but we should link them to the market space and the private sector.
“To ensure that is done, the president has procured over 100,000 items that can empower over 100,000 youths across the country.”
Also, Yilwata stated that Tinubu has approved the implementation of a large-scale conditional cash transfer program.
He stated that the effort intends to reach 70 million Nigerians, with at least 15 million households expected to benefit.
The minister stated that each of the households, which have four to five people, will receive a total of N75,000 in three instalments.
