The World Bank says the conditional cash transfer scheme of the Federal Government had little impact on household consumption, financial inclusion or employment of beneficiaries.
The scheme was also noted to have had minimal impact on women’s employment. This is despite the global lender funding a significant chunk of the cash transfer programme signed off to the nation as a loan.
These findings were disclosed in a new research document posted on the World Bank website on Wednesday, The PUNCH reports.
In 2016, the Federal Government in collaboration with the World Bank launched a social safety net programme for the nation. The project is being implemented through the National Social Safety Nets Project. At its launch, the government planned to share N5,000 to one million Nigerians as part of its N500bn social intervention package.
In the following years of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, the programme was sustained alongside others. However, on assumption of office, President Bola Tinubu, through the National Economic Council, rejected the social intervention register on the back of credibility issues. The government, however, secured a $800m World Bank facility planned to be disbursed in the form of cash transfer to the most vulnerable Nigerians, following the removal of the petrol subsidy.
