FG LAUNCHES $1BN HOPE-SP TO TACKLE POVERTY, EMPOWER HOUSEHOLDS
Read Time:2 Minute, 47 Second
By: Fasasi Hammad
The Federal Government has launched the $1 billion Household Prosperity and Empowerment Social Protection Project (HOPE-SP), aimed at moving vulnerable Nigerians from temporary relief to sustainable economic empowerment and self-reliance.
The programme was unveiled on Wednesday at the State House Banquet Hall in Abuja alongside four other initiatives designed to strengthen Nigeria’s humanitarian response and poverty-reduction efforts.
The initiatives include the One-Humanitarian-One Poverty Response System (OHOPRS), Emergency Cash Transfer Programme, Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction Ministerial Blueprint, and Humanity First Magazine.
Speaking at the launch, First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu said the programmes, despite having different functions, were united by the goal of improving the wellbeing of vulnerable Nigerians.
She said HOPE-SP would strengthen the identification of vulnerable households, assess their specific needs and provide immediate support while creating pathways towards recovery, empowerment and self-reliance.
READ MORE…
MBAPPE HAT-TRICK POWERS REAL MADRID TO SECOND STRAIGHT LA LIGA WIN
The First Lady noted that the initiatives were particularly important amid the economic reforms being implemented by President Bola Tinubu’s administration, stressing that many households still require support as the reforms take effect.
She described OHOPRS as a coordinated national platform for humanitarian intervention, social protection and poverty reduction, designed to eliminate duplication and create unified registries for identifying and tracking vulnerable households.
She added that the Emergency Cash Transfer Programme would provide rapid financial assistance to families affected by economic shocks, while the ministerial blueprint would convert the government’s humanitarian and poverty-reduction priorities into measurable actions.
According to her, Humanity First Magazine would document the experiences of Nigerians whose lives have been positively impacted by government interventions.
Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Dr Bernard Doro, said the initiatives marked a new national architecture for humanitarian intervention and social protection, shifting government’s focus from reactive palliatives to proactive empowerment.
Doro said the new approach would focus on households rather than individual programmes, with beneficiaries identified, assessed, supported and tracked through a “poverty graduation pathway” towards economic inclusion and self-reliance.
He said the government would integrate existing databases into a unified platform anchored on the National Social Register, which currently contains about 20 million households.
The minister added that a digital dashboard and National Poverty Intelligence Lab would strengthen monitoring and ensure that the success of social protection programmes was measured by the number of households protected, economically included and lifted out of poverty.
Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu, said effective social protection required cooperation among the federal, state and local governments, as well as development partners.
Bagudu said the administration’s ambition to build a $1 trillion economy by 2030 must be matched with efforts to ensure that economic opportunities reach Nigerians at the grassroots.
He also highlighted the government’s ward development initiative covering 8,809 wards nationwide, saying it was designed to identify the causes of poverty and exclusion at community level.
Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum commended the initiative, stressing that sustainable peace and security required addressing the root causes of vulnerability, including poverty and social inequality.
He also called for continued research into issues surrounding identity and national security while congratulating the Federal Government and the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction on the rollout.
Happy
0 %
Sad
0 %
Excited
0 %
Sleepy
0 %
Angry
0 %
Surprise
0 %
0
0