August 07, (THEWILL) – About 3,351 vulnerable persons in Cross River State have been selected to receive the Federal Government ‘s Conditional Cash Transfer.
The cash transfer is under the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP).
The Honourable Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya Farouq, disclosed this in Calabar during the flag off of the programme on behalf of President Muhamadu Buhari.
“We are here on behalf of President Buhari to give support to some of the most poor and vulnerable citizens in the country and Cross River State, in particular.
“This is a one-off grant to women and youths valued at N20,000.
“3,351 persons in Cross River will be paid and they are expected to use the money for empowerment and their small businesses,” she said.
The minister explained that the present administration inherited a national poverty incidence level averaging 70 per cent.
As a result of this, she noted, the government had decided to address the plight of the poor and vulnerable in the country, despite other economic challenges that it inherited.
She added that this informed the decision to initiate the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP) as a strategy for poverty reduction and enhancing social inclusion among the people, especially women in rural areas.
She acknowledged the contributions of the state government to the success of the programme, saying that many people in the state would be on their way out of poverty to prosperity.
THEWILL Correspondent, Aniekan Bassey has over six years experience that spans across several fields in print journalism including development communication, sexual reproductive and health rights issues, crime, climate change, social justice, business and human interest stories.
