Abdulwahab Isa 
The Federal Government has confirmed scaling up the Social Investment Programme (direct cash transfer to vulnerable citizens) to 20 million Nigerian households. Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, confirmed the updated figure on Tuesday during the plenary session at the ongoing Nigeria Economic Summit #NES 30 that had World Bank Country Director, Ndiamé Diop in attendance.
Edun spoke on government reforms, social investment and revenue as well as expenditure profile of the government under Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.
He said: “On interventions on social investment programmes, it is spearheaded by direct transfers to qualified 60 per cent poorest population. And right now, 20 million households have been supported, and are being supported directly. And it is going to rise.
It’s 20 million people, four million households so far, and it’s going to rise to 15 million households that will be paid directly by the government. “Students are being helped. Student loans, about $239,000 is currently being processed and about 20-30 per cent of that have already been funded.
They are being funded. About $20,000 and a fee per month, and the fees are being paid. Likewise, consumer credit is being provided to the workers so that they can afford everything from, maybe, household goods or even conversion of their cars, kits to convert their cars to cheaper, cleaner, CNG fuel.
“There are a whole plethora of social investment interventions on which the funds are being spent.” In the agriculture sector value chain, the finance minister said a lot of intervention had happened there.
According to him, “in the agricultural sector, with individuals, when it comes to small scale businesses, grants are being provided to one million small micro enterprises.
“Grants of up to one million, totalling N75 billion. For the big organisations, the effect of the foreign exchange adjustment, in particular, on the profit and loss, and so for them, there’s another N75 billion being disbursed, N1 billion each at nine per cent per annum to help them too cope with the cost of living, the cost of their production and operations.”
