President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has called on the National Assembly to amend the National Social Investment Programmes Agency (NSIPA) Act 2023.
The President’s request was conveyed in a letter to the House of Representatives, read by Speaker Tajudeen Abbas during Tuesday’s plenary session.
According to the letter, the Act aimed at enhancing transparency and data-driven implementation of social welfare initiatives.
Tinubu’s letter emphasized that the amendment would make the National Social Register the primary targeting tool for the Federal Government’s social investment programmes.
“The purpose of the bill is to make the national social register the primary targeting tool for the implementation of social investment programmes of government,” the letter stated.
READ ALSO:
The President stressed that the revision would ensure: Transparency in the implementation of programmes, A data-driven approach to decision-making, and Effective delivery of social protection benefits to vulnerable Nigerians.
He urged lawmakers to treat the request with urgency.
It would be recalled that the National Social Investment Programmes Agency was established in 2023 under former President Muhammadu Buhari to oversee key welfare initiatives, including N-Power, Conditional Cash Transfer, Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP), Home-Grown School Feeding Initiative.
However, the agency has been embroiled in controversies and allegations of corruption.
On January 2, 2024, Tinubu suspended NSIPA’s CEO, Halima Shehu, over financial misconduct.
Also on January 8, 2024, the former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu* was suspended.
This led to the suspension of all programmes under NSIPA on January 13, 2024, pending investigations into alleged mismanagement.
In March 2024, the House of Representatives urged the Federal Government to resume the suspended initiatives.
The House cited the importance of these programmes for poverty alleviation.
However, the Senate is currently debating a bill to transfer NSIPA’s supervision from the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs to the Presidency to centralize oversight and improve accountability.
Tinubu’s proposal seeks to rebuild public trust in social investment initiatives by ensuring: Proper targeting of beneficiaries using verified data, Elimination of corruption in programme administration, and Efficient use of resources to address poverty and vulnerability.
The amendment, if passed, will serve as a significant step in reforming Nigeria’s social protection framework, ensuring it meets the needs of the most vulnerable while promoting transparency and accountability.
