Nigeria’s Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idrsi says his Ministry will work to support activities and intervention programmes of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation as part of efforts to achieve the 8-Point Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The Minister was speaking when the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation Dr. Betta Edu paid him a courtesy visit at his office in Radio House, Abuja.
During the meeting, the Information Minister pledged to support the activities of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation through honest and transparent reporting, which builds trust between the government and the public.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 8-point areas of priority and his vision of Renewed Hope emphasizes the need for people to be truthful, to be honest, to be transparent and to be accountable. And this is what we uphold,” the Minister said, adding his Ministry will deploy relevant expertise and resources to support the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation in the effective communication of their activities and programmes.
Poverty alleviation is one of President Tinubu’s 8-Point Agenda, which the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu is working to implement with the support of the Ministry of Information and National Orientation.
National register for the poor
Part of the effort on poverty alleviation is the authentication of the country’s national social register, which the Ministry is working on ahead of the disbursement of financial palliatives to poor and vulnerable Nigerians.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has pledged 15 million households will receive 25,000 Naira each for three months, beginning in October, as part of efforts to cushion the effects of some major policy reforms.
Dr. Betta Edu says her ministry is already working to ensure the funds get to the right people.
“We need to ensure that we have a national social register that is a true reflection of the poorest, of the poor in Nigeria. And that’s what we have started doing,” she told newsmen at the Radio House in Abuja.
“We’ve gone round and we’re doing the verification process. We’re still in the States right now, and we will continue to move until we verify the entire national social register.
“What is most important is that we’re providing social safety net programs that can prevent Nigerians from getting below the poverty line while pulling those who, are impoverished out of poverty.”
Renewed Hope Shelter Programme
The Renewed Hope Shelter Programme, for the poor, internally displaced persons and refugees, is one of the programmes the Ministry looks to implement.
Dr. Edu said the housing programme will rely on the community to implement the programme, beginning with Benue and Borno where a humanitarian crisis has left many displaced.
“It’s the community building for themselves in the community. Now, we are going to do geographical and community targeting. So there are areas where internally displaced persons are presently they are displaced either by the flaw, by insecurity, or any other issue,” she said, adding her Ministry will work with state governments to provide the land where the shelters will be built.