FG to Implement, Sustain National Social Register

FG to Implement, Sustain National Social Register

The Federal Government has said it will ensure the utilization and sustainability of the National Social Register by all stakeholders in the distribution of maximum basic services.
This was disclosed in Abuja by the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Budget and National Planning, Mr. Olajide Odewale, during an engagement meeting on the NSR with the line Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) delivering social interventions programmes and the Donor Partners
Mr. Odewale who was represented by Mr. Kayode Obasa, Director Social Develolopment said the formation of the National Social Register under the office of the Special Adviser to the President on Social Investment is a great stride to reducing poverty and ensuring accessibility of social infrastructure by the poorest of the poor and hard to reach citizens.
The Permanent Secretary said the idea of the National Social Register which was muted by the World Bank some years back under the Youth Empowerment and Social Support Operations (YESSO) project is now a reality as Nigeria owns a Social Register.
“I see among us the implementing partners like UNICEF, Save the Children and Action Against Hunger, for so long these agencies had invested a lot of resources in developing the register for various interventions. However with the NSR, partners can now channel resources that impact on the poor and vulnerable directly without bothering about how to generate the data” he said.
He called on all to “demand for data from the National Social Register, question it, put it to test, validate it and if it passes the quality test please do endeavor to inform others about the existence”.
The National Social Register is a data register established for poor and vulnerable Nigerians to ensure effective implementation of poverty alleviation programmes of the federal government.
The development of the National Safety Register (NSR) is being coordinated by the National Safety Nets Coordinating Office (NASSCO), under the office of the Vice President.