Federal Government’s National Social Safety Nets Programme commenced on Friday in Kaduna state with 10,623 persons, receiving N10, 000 each for two months.
The beneficiaries were drawn from nine local governments across the three senatorial zones of the state.
Speaking at the flag-off ceremony, the state’s Commissioner for Rural and Community Development, Usman Hassan said the programme ought to have stated in the state earlier but was delayed by logistics.
Mr Hassan added that the federal government used database to analyse and select those who qualified to benefit for the scheme.
“Subsidy of N5,000 will be paid to identified family monthly.
“Logistics stopped the payment earlier, they started in some states before us but we are doing it now, three other states will start after Kaduna.
“We are to start last month but we couldn’t so we are paying the beneficiaries double, N10, 000 to cover last month and this month,” he said.
He added: “The old and young men and women were selected because poverty is like death it doesn’t respect the young or old you can find an old extremely poor and you can find a young graduate who is poor.”
The Federal government in its effort to address extreme poverty and other forms of vulnerability among Nigerians designed National Social Safety-Nets Programme, NASSP, in collaboration with the World Bank to support the sustainability of the social protection programme across Nigeria.
The cash transfer component is to give the selected poorest and most vulnerable household (beneficiary) a monthly cash of N5,000 in order to enhance their consumption level.
Presently, 21 states are participating in the National Cash Transfer Programme and Kaduna state inclusive. It is a three years programme which commenced in 2016 to terminate next year.
