Kwara govt, residents confirm receipt of pro-poor N5,000 monthly stipend ‎from FG

The Kwara State government  has confirmed receipt of monthly national cash transfer of N5,000 meant to be paid to the poor masses in the  country from the Federal Government, just as some residents who spoke with BusinessDay in Ilorin, the state capital commended the pro-poor gesture of the Presidency.

Aminat Yahya-Bagudu, Head of Unit, Conditional Cash Transfer at the Kwara State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, revealed that 10,700 persons are currently benefiting from the pro-poor national conditional cash transfer scheme established by Federal Government to alleviate the poverty that stares most Nigerians on the face.

Yahya-Bagudu, who said the programme was part of the economic components designed by Federal Government to tackle poverty in the country, added that the beneficiaries had started receiving the payment of N5,000 monthly each from the Federal Government.

‎”10,700 households are currently benefiting from the first phase of Federal Government’s National Cash Transfer Programme in Kwara State. Under the scheme, 12 local government areas are participating in the phase while the remaining four local government areas are being considered to benefit in the second phase”. ‎

While explaining that the selection process was based on data collected for the World Bank supported Youth Employment and Social Support Operation (YESSO), where each community identified those considered as poor, she noted that the process was transparent and devoid of any influence.

She however, added that the second phase of the programme would commence as soon the social register is shared with her unit for the payment of the N5,000 monthly stipend. ‎

On current hitches in payment in some places, she said the selected banks had engaged the services of a consulting firm in order to decentralise payment process to all beneficiaries across the state.

Some beneficiaries spoke with our correspondent on the condition of anonymity in both Ilorin South and East local government areas confirmed receipt of the pro-poor stipend, but appealed to the Federal   Government to work on the inflation and provide critical infrastructure across the country in order for them to effectively control poverty level and improve on people’s standard of living.