Conditional cash transfer beneficiaries in Katsina to get N5, 000 stipends

The beneficiaries of the Federal Government’s N5, 000 Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) stipend for the poor in Katsina State would be paid before the end of March.

Special adviser to Governor Aminu Bello Masari on Girls’ Child Education, Mrs. Binta Alli who stated this recently, said first set of beneficiaries would come from 12 council areas.

Mrs Alli stated this after a four-day special training for enumerators that would capture the figure of those who are poor and vulnerable in the state.

She said the training was meant to assist enumerators to use correct variables and parameters in determining those adjudged to be poor and vulnerable in the state.

The special adviser, who did not disclose when other beneficiaries from the rest council areas would get to benefit from the stipend, however said they would get to enjoy theirs at a later date.

She explained: “By March ending, the beneficiaries from the 12 local council areas of the state would be paid their stipend. The beneficiaries have been estimated to be from 800 to 1,000 per local council area.’’

She added that 144 participants from the 12 selected local council areas in the state have been selected for the training programme, pointing out that the training of the remaining enumerators would be conducted later.

Meanwhile, the National Programme Coordinator for National Social Safety Net Coordinating Office (NASSCO), Peter Papka has revealed that more than 58 million Nigerians are still considered poor despite government’s efforts at reducing poverty in the country.

Pakpa made the disclosure in Katsina in his contribution during the four-day training for enumerators to capture the figure of the poor and the vulnerable in the state.

According to him: “Despite huge investments in various poverty alleviation programmes by governments in Nigeria, more than 58 million Nigerians are still considered poor”.

He said the NASSCO had already established social register on the poor and the vulnerable in 10 states. He said the social register was aimed at building a platform that would assist to sustain poverty alleviation programmes in the country.

He attributed the failure of the previous poverty alleviation programmes in the country to use of wrong method in tackling poverty issues, adding that correct beneficiaries were also not identified.

On his part, the Secretary to the Government of Katsina State (SGS), Mustapha Mohammed Inuwa, said high level of poverty in the North could be traced to the raising of large number of children by some parents who cannot adequately cater for them.

Inuwa said the state government had taken a number of measures aimed at alleviating poverty that included skills acquisition among other programmes for the reduction in the number of the unemployed.