Chief Executive Officer, Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Dr Muda Yusuf, has described the Federal Government’s newly launched Social Intervention Programmes as a timely and strategic initiative.

He also said the programme was capable of strengthening public support for ongoing economic reforms while cushioning vulnerable Nigerians from the impact of economic adjustment.

In a policy brief released yesterday, he said the programmes represented an important shift in the government’s reform agenda from achieving macroeconomic stability to delivering inclusive growth and improved welfare for citizens.

The intervention package, supported by the World Bank, comprises five flagship programmes, including the Nigeria Community Action for Resilience and Economic Stimulus Additional Financing (NG-CARES AF), the Solutions for Internally Displaced and Host Communities Programme (SOLID), and the Human Capital Opportunities for Prosperity and Equity (HOPE) initiatives covering governance, primary healthcare and education.

According to Yusuf, while the administration’s economic reforms have significantly improved macroeconomic fundamentals through greater exchange-rate stability, enhanced fiscal transparency, stronger external reserves and renewed investor confidence, these gains must ultimately translate into better living standards for Nigerians.

He stressed that macroeconomic stability alone could not be the measure of successful reforms, noting that the true test lay in reducing inflationary pressures, creating jobs, raising productivity and increasing household incomes.

He argued that beyond providing temporary relief for vulnerable households, the programmes would reinforce the legitimacy and sustainability of the government’s reform agenda by demonstrating that economic reforms are designed to improve citizens’ welfare rather than merely produce favourable macroeconomic indicators.