Since her assumption of office on August 21, 2023, the Minister of Humanitarian affairs and poverty alleviation, Dr Betta Edu, has taken the bull by the horn in actualising the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Therefore as the world marks the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, PAUL OKAH outlines the activities of the minister aimed at eradicating poverty in the last few months.
It is no longer news that millions of Nigerians are living in abject poverty, a situation that has warranted the federal government to initiate different programmes coordinated by the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation aimed at alleviating the poor living conditions of Nigerians.
Upon her assumption of office on August 21 2023, the minister, Dr Betta Edu made it clear that she would walk the talk by ensuring that the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is achieved as it is unthinkable and inconceivable for Nigerians to languish in poverty whereas they have a president with a human heart and listening ear.
Therefore, from the first day, Edu initiated plans to eradicate poverty. This includes seeking collaboration of relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDA) that would contribute to her blueprint for the eradication of poverty. It also includes visiting different states across the country for the distribution of palliatives.
Distribution of palliatives/ equipment to N-Skill beneficiaries in Minna
On September 15 this year, she disclosed that her ministry is collaborating with UNICEF and state governments to create, within a secure location, new transit schools and low-cost homes for over 11,000 out-of-school children and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Niger state as part of President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda which focuses on the eradication of poverty and reduction of the humanitarian crisis in the country.
Speaking when she paid a visit to Shiroro local government area of the state, Edu lamented the continued closure of over 400 schools in the state which has forced over 11,000 pupils and students out of their classrooms. She therefore called for immediate action towards ameliorating the situation, as according to her, it was unacceptable as lack of basic education predisposes people to poverty.
The minister used the opportunity to commend the state governor, Muhammed Umaru Bago, for continued payment of the displaced teachers’ salaries, while encouraging them to continue to teach children under the new transit class rooms provided by the government and UNICEF at temporal holding sites.
As part of her itinerary in the state, she also flagged off the presentation of starter packs to 400 N-Skill beneficiaries. The equipment included vulcanising machines, pumping and grass cutting machines, irrigation pumps, among others, while food and non-food items were distributed to some of the trained IDPs.
Flagging off NSR verification in Zamfara/presentation of houses to IDPs
Similarly, on Thursday October 12, Dr Edu and Zamfara state governor, Dauda Lawal flagged off the verification of the National Social Register (NSR) in Gusau, the state capital with the governor eulogising Dr Edu as the ‘positive agent of the Renewed Hope Agenda’.
Speaking during the flag-off in Government House Gusau, the minister bemoaned the huge humanitarian crises facing Zamfara and revealed that President Tinubu has directed her ministry to work with the state government in order to alleviate the humanitarian and poverty challenges facing the people.
She said the flag-off in Zamfara, North-west has clearly shown that the Renewed Hope Agenda of the president has no political leaning.
In continuation, Edu handed over 40 fully-completed houses at the resettlement city built by the Refugees Commission to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Gidan Dawa area of Gusau while expressing the federal government’s commitment to addressing pressing humanitarian challenges in the country including providing decent homes for IDPs.
Responding to the governor’s request to build more homes and cities for IDPs in another part of the Senatorial District in the state, the minister said, “Mr governor, all you need to do is to provide us with lands and other requirements at the state level that will enable us to build as requested.”
Responding, Governor Lawal lauded Dr Edu’s zeal and dexterity in ensuring she delivers the mandate of her ministry.
He said, “Zamfara has suffered in terms of insecurity and humanitarian crisis in the last 10 years. I call on the federal government to do more to secure the lives and property of our people while asking for more social and capital investments in Zamfara state to take our people out of humanitarian crises and poverty.”
Taking free medical outreach, food items to Lagos community
On October 3, inhabitants of Oko Agbon and other riverine communities in Lagos state were in jubilant mood as no fewer than 1,500 of them benefitted from the free medical outreach and distribution of food items by the ministry.
The outreach was part of the minister’s itinerary during her visit to the riverine area of the state to flag off the verification of the Expanded National Social Register (ENSR).
Dr Edu, who personally conducted some of the medical tests and administered free drugs to patients at St John Catholic Church Oko Agbon area of Yaba local government area of the state, said part of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu is to reduce poverty through addressing it from different dimensions.
The minister, who toured the riverine communities by canoe, maintained that improved healthcare would reduce the high-level of multi-dimensional poverty in the country starting from rural communities across the country.
In their remarks, the traditional chiefs of Oko Agbon, Wasiu Salako and Daniel Hungbeji commended the federal government for remembering them and coming to visit them in their community. They said it was the first time any minister of the federal republic would come to those communities.
Distribution of relief materials to over 900 households, IDPs in Maiduguri, others
On September 8, Edu flagged off the distribution of non-food items to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) covering over 900 households at Shwari Camp 5 in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital.
The items include hundreds of mattresses, pillows, blankets, footwears, wrappers and treated Insecticide mosquito nets.
The minister assured the 480,000 unregistered IDPs that the federal government was not unmindful of their plight and humanitarian needs, saying President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda geared towards eradicating poverty would directly cover them working with the state government.
She however lamented the poor living conditions of unregistered IDPs who are largely from Northern Borno, vowing, “We must change the narratives.” Edu commended the state governor, Professor Zulum for being exceptionall available when needed.
The state commissioner for women affairs and social development, Hajia Zuwaira Gambo, who was on hand to conduct the minister around the camp said, the state government had at various times provided for the IDPs. She however appealed to the federal government to complement what the state government is doing to ease the suffering of the IDPs, even as she lamented that the number of IDPs kept increasing daily.
Furthermore, hundreds of families living at the Bulumkutu Rehabilitation Camp in Maiduguri erupted in jubilation as Edu distributed food items to them as part of federal government’s immediate relief package to support them.
Inhabitants at the camp were met by the minister, including 14 rescued Chibok girls and their children who have been undergoing rehabilitation at the camp.
The food items distributed to the IDPs by the minister included hundreds of bags of rice, corn, beans, garri vegetable oil, Maggi and other food items.
N25,000 grant for vulnerable persons from November
The ministryhas announced that it would from next month (November) start the payment of N25,000 grant to benefiting members of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners captured in the expanded National Social Register of the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) Scheme.
The minister announced this on October 5 when she met with the leadership of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) led by its president Comrade Joe Ajaero at the Labour House in Abuja. She explained that the decision to include vulnerable pensioners in the CCT scheme was President Tinubu’s commitment to labour leaders which he promised to deliver.
She appealed to the NLC to help fast-track the process of collating data of would-be vulnerable pensioners’ beneficiaries so that they can start receiving CCT.
Responding, Ajaero expressed delight at the various poverty alleviation schemes rolled out by the ministry, saying getting to the root cause of poverty would go a long way in addressing the problem. The NLC boss urged the federal government to create more jobs by creating a productive economy where factories function to employ more workers.
The president, Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Godwin Abumisi, thanked President Tinubu and the minister for finding the retirees worthy of the federal government benefits, saying pensioners received as low as between five and 10,000 Naira monthly.
Collaborative visit to NAF
Earlier on September 5, Edu stated that in view of the numerous capabilities of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF), it remains a key enabler towards the successful implementation of the 8-point agenda of the President Tinubu-led administration.
A statement by her special assistant on media and publicity, Mr Rasheed Olanrewaju Zubair quoted the minister as saying this when she paid a courtesy visit to the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Hassan Abubakar.
She noted that President Tinubu remains committed to reducing the number of Nigerians in dire need of humanitarian assistance irrespective of their location, saying it was in view of the difficulty experienced in gaining access to these locations that the minister was at the NAF headquarters to solicit assistance in the delivery of relief materials to the needy in areas hindered by difficult terrains or insecurity.
Speaking further, Dr Edu stated that families of NAF veterans as well as those who paid the supreme price while on active duty would be captured in the new expanded poverty alleviation programme set to be rolled out inweeks to come.
To ensure that the appropriate NAF beneficiaries are captured under the expanded poverty alleviation programme, the minister suggested the establishment of a humanitarian desk officer at NAF headquarters for ease of liaison with her ministry during the compilation and submission of the list of beneficiaries.
Responding, Air Marshal Abubakar, assured the minister of NAF’s readiness and willingness to assist her in achieving the mandate of the ministry, for which he said effective coordination is the cornerstone of any successful humanitarian operation.
The Minister, who was accompanied by senior officials of her ministry also took time out to lay a wreath at the NAF Memorial Arcade.
Tinubu includes veterans, families of fallen heroes in CCT, others
Furthermore, on October 5, during an official visit to the Ministry of Defence Headquarters, Edu disclosed that President Tinubu has included vulnerable ex-servicemen, widows and dependants of fallen heroes in the National Social Register to benefit from the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) and other social intervention programmes.
Edu said the federal government has expanded the welfare scheme to accommodate ex-servicemen, their widows and dependants in fulfilment of the Renewed Hope Agenda the president promise Nigerians.
She sought accurate data on the affected ex-servicemen and their dependants to enable them get captured in the ongoing National Social Register Verification.
Dr Edu equally called on the Ministry of Defence to collaborate with her ministry to ensure President Tinubu succeeds in eradicating poverty in Nigeria.
In his response, the Hon minister of defence, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, said the visit was timely and thanked Dr Edu for including the retirees in the welfare scheme, which he said would go a long way in renewing the hope of retired officers and their families and motivate the working officers to secure the Nigerian territorial integrity.
