Fatimah Otunsanya
The Federal Government says about 15 million vulnerable households have been captured in its Benefit Register for conditional cash assistance being implemented in partnership with the World Bank as part of efforts to cushion economic shocks.
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Dr Bernard Doro, disclosed this during an interview on Arise Television on Friday.
He explained that not all households listed in the National Social Register qualify for direct financial support.
He said, “We are currently offering conditional cash assistance in conjunction with the World Bank, but this money is actually meant as a shock response. And so not everyone within the 17.9 million households in the register is in the Benefit Register. The Benefit Register is around 15 million vulnerable households.”
Doro noted that the National Social Register currently contains about 17.9 million vulnerable households identified through community-based assessments and socio-economic data, but stressed that beneficiaries for specific interventions are selected separately based on programme objectives.
According to him, the conditional cash assistance programme is designed as a temporary measure to provide relief to households facing economic hardship, rather than a universal benefit for all individuals captured in the broader social register.
Doro had disclosed that about 70 million Nigerians have been captured as vulnerable persons in the National Social Register as part of efforts to drive targeted poverty reduction interventions.
He stated that the figure represents approximately 17.9 million vulnerable households currently identified nationwide.
He said, “Every poor person at the moment in the country that has been captured because the target started with the poorest of the poor. At the moment we have about 17.9 million vulnerable households that have been captured in the register, which translates to around 70 million individuals in that register. We are continuing to expand the register to capture as many people as possible.”
Doro explained that the register focuses primarily on identifying the poorest of the poor through community engagement and socio-economic assessments, noting that local communities play a central role in identifying vulnerable individuals.
According to him, “Communities will guide us based on the questions that we have and the criteria that we have to be able to identify who is poor amongst them. And then we take steps also to validate these when we visit their homes, we look at the condition of the homes, we also look at their own personal data and we use this to be able to target who is the poorest of the poor.”
He clarified that inclusion in the National Social Register does not automatically qualify individuals for direct financial support, stressing that beneficiaries are selected through a separate Benefit Register based on specific programmes.
“Our desire is to ensure that every Nigerian is captured in the National Social Register. And just for context, there is a difference between the National Social Register and the Benefit Register. So when programmes are planned, you then target individuals based on the nature of the programme that you are delivering,” he added.
The minister added that the Federal Government would continue to expand the National Social Register while ensuring that targeted interventions reach those most affected by economic shocks and vulnerabilities.