Niger Spends N1.6bn On Poverty Alleviation

from All Africa

Leadership (Abuja)

By Abdulazeez Sani

Niger State Governor, Dr.Mu'azu Babangida Aliyu has said that the state would spend N1.6 billion on poverty alleviation annually as intervention measure to reduce un-employment.

Dr. Aliyu made the revelation at the 'Jamaa Forum' in New Bussa, Borgu Local Government area. He noted that each of the 274 wards in the state is to receive a monthly sum of N500 thousand for disbursement as poverty alleviation to indigent persons.

According to the governor, "Development is to begin from the ward to the local government, to state and finally to federal level because there can be no meaningful development without a solid foundation from the grassroots".

He also stressed that his administration is to come up with a new poverty alleviation program tagged the Conditional Cash Transfer which is to target indigent citizens and widows in the state.

"Niger State is one pilot state of the conditional cash transfer program. The federal government is giving us N140 million to be able to identify those who are destitute either by calamity of their husbands' death, people like that we will pay them some allowances monthly so that their children can go to school and be able to feed for one year", Dr. Babangida Aliyu said.

He added that after one year, the families will be assessed and those that have qualified to be weaned out of the system, we will give them some money to start business. So apart from the federal government contribution, Niger State will put in N300 million to cover the entire state.

The Governor also maintained stated that the debts his administration inherited from the past administration, Dr. Babangida Aliyu said some contractors that have been awarded contracts since 2002 are only moving to site now that a judicial commission of inquiry has been established.

The governor said of the N23 billion declared as debt only N8 billion is real debt on the state, some of the monies that have been embezzled have been brought out and people are beginning to work.