SCI asks govt to empower young Nigerians

Save the Children International Nigeria has urged the Federal Government to empower the younger generation.

Country Director, Mercy Gichuhi, stated this at the closing event of the eight-year-long Child Development Grant Programme (CDGP) funded by UK Aid.

She said SCI is passionate about interrupting the cycle of intergenerational poverty exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, pushing more households into destitution.

She commended the Federal Government for establishing the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, and the ongoing review of the National Social Protection Policy and expansion of the scope of the National Social Safety Nets programme in response to the pandemic.

National Programme Manager of CDGP, Kayode Ajumobi said: “Over the past eight years, CDGP has worked with the Federal Government and the governments of Kano, Kaduna, Jigawo and Zamfara to strengthen the design, delivery and institutionalisation of social protection.

“The transformative potential of social protection largely depends on its alignment with other factors and policies, such as basic social services, the functioning of markets and employment opportunities. In the next two years, both SCI and the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) will continue to collaborate with governments to expand the coverage of social protection to underserved population groups.”