As the Buhari administration gets set for its second term, analysts are focusing on a key question: what will the administration do with the policies and programmes which are designed to improve the welfare of Nigerians at the lower levels which it implemented in its first term? This is a significant issue because the administration, from the word go, pegged its legitimacy and relevance on improving the lives of ordinary Nigerians across the country. This was why the government introduced a portfolio of social investment programmes in 2015 under the office of Vive President Yemi Osinbajo with the goal of taking millions of Nigerian citizens out of poverty.
In spite of skepticism about the implementation of some parts of these programmes, there are many documented positive reports from across the country of significant benefits delivered. Confident of its track record, the National Social Investment Office (NSIO), which coordinates the social investment programmes under the office of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, has encouraged members of the public to examine the evidence themselves to see that the programmes are succeeding.
Vice President Osinbajo is not only actively but passionately involved in the conceptualization and implementation of the social investment programmes. In fact, his dedication to the social investment drive of the administration has received high praise from the President. At an event held in May 2019, President Muhammadu Buhari commended Osinbajo’s efforts and said he was glad that the school feeding programme had improved attendance in schools.
Buhari was particularly pleased that school children from poor homes could get at least one decent meal a day. The President’s joy is in congruence with the goals of the National Home Grown School Feeding Programme: to provide nutritious meals for primary school children, thereby encourage learning, increase enrolment in schools and create jobs for cooks.
The NSIO’s June 2018 report recorded 8,596,340 pupils in 24 states being fed by the NHGSFP, and 90,670 cooks being empowered through the programme. Osinbajo announced in May 2019 that as many as 190,000 farmers earn a living through the programme by supplying farm products. The feeding programme continues to attract plenty of interest among Nigerians because of its connection to children and to the education sector.
Another popular social investment vehicle of the NSIO is Trader Moni/Market Moni initiative, an offshoot of the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme GEEP. Again, Prof. Osinbajo has been receiving widespread commendation from various quarters for his successful hands-on leadership of the Trader Moni initiative, with the President jokingly expressing concern about the safety of his vice in crowded business areas.
Trader Moni involves disbursement of collateral free loans to business people including traders, women cooperatives, market women, and farmers. The recipients of the loans must be members of approved cooperatives in order to ensure that the loans are paid back.
The NSIO has reported that over 4,084 cooperatives have benefitted with about 308,737 certified loan disbursements. Trader Moni is not the only NSIO programme that supports small businesses. There is also NPOWER, an initiative that seeks to improve the entrepreneurship culture, as well as develop skills among youths to make them more employable. The target demographic is youths between the ages of 18 and 35.
Each enrollee is given a monthly stipend of N30,000 and they are trained in their chosen vocation by NPOWER Volunteers. The NSIO has recorded impressive statistics for NPOWER, with enrollment as at June 2018 standing at 300,000.
Each programme targets a specific demography, and the NSIO goes to great lengths to identify eligible beneficiaries. This is evident in the implementation of the NSIO’s National Social Safety Programme which was designed to get accurate data on poor and vulnerable households who qualify for assistance by the NSIO.
The data gathering is done through various scientific means including poverty mapping, community-based targeting and proxy means. With the information captured through this process the NSIO identifies beneficiaries for its National Cash Transfer programme.
Each beneficiary then receives monthly cash transfers of N5000. In addition to the payment, beneficiaries are mentored and coached to form savings groups by Community Facilitators who visit them weekly. As of June 2018, the NSIO announced that it had 297,973 beneficiary households who were being trained by 2,495 Community Facilitators in 20 states. In all, the social investment programmes have produced a total of 9.76m beneficiaries.
In Buhari’s second term, the Federal Government will be looking to consolidate on these results as the NSIO continues with its portfolio of social investment programmes with the VP overseeing them with his usual rigorous passion. There’s no doubt that the Osinbajo’s leadership is a key reason for the overall success of the social investment programmes. His oversight and the high-level implementation strongly indicate that these programmes are close to the heart of the Buhari administration.
The progress made notwithstanding, Special Adviser to the President on Social Investment Maryam Uwais believes that the NSIO can achieve more in the next four years with improved funding. She says that the Federal Government will in its second term scale up the programmes to reach more Nigerians: “We have gone far in 21 states but we hope to build on it”, she said.
In response to skepticism which some Nigerians have concerning the programmes she has urged the press to visit the poor communities and rural areas to investigate the activities of the NSIO. “If our media go to these rural areas, many will understand how far we have gone in the 21 states”. She also acknowledged the attention the programmes got during the last elections. “This intervention is to alleviate poverty; we are seeing results. For instance, the Trader Moni scheme has been on since 2016 but it got more attention during the elections”.
Improved publicity of the NSIO’s operations will help to douse skepticism and improve awareness among potential beneficiaries who come mainly from communities that suffer challenges with internet connectivity and communication in general. These challenges affect both the smooth implementation of the programme and the communication of its benefits. Another challenge the NSIO must improve upon is the short-changing of field officers and beneficiaries by supervising officials who often exploit their positions in many ways.
The good news is that the NSIO and its partner organizations such as the World Bank, UNICEF, Accenture and Action Aid, have a chance to review the results so far and change strategies where necessary. Osinbajo has said that a key part of the administration’s Next Level plan involves scaling up the programmes.
“At the Next Level, which is what we are talking about now, what we are saying is that we must make this programme bigger,” he said.
- Udo-Akpan is a policy analyst based in Lagos.
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