By Monday Ijeh
Abuja – A Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) delegation on study tour of Nigeria’s Social Investment Programme (SIP) has lauded its implementation, saying it has recorded tremendous success across the country.
Prof. John Mugabushaka, Chief of Staff, Ministry of Social Inclusion, DRC and leader of the delegation, gave the commendation on Thursday in Abuja after the tour of sites of the programme.
He said that the delegation had visited the Conditional Cash Transfer Sites in Kogi, witnessed payments and interacted with beneficiaries.
Mugabushaka said the programme had recorded huge success in poverty alleviation in Nigeria, adding that the poorest in the country’s communities were reached in the implementation of the programme.
“Social investment programme in Nigeria has recorded great success and Nigeria is making the right way in poverty alleviation.
“Our experience has spoken for itself because we had direct contact with the beneficiaries of the programme in the communities we visited in Kogi.
“I was particularly impressed by a woman in one of the communities who benefited from the programme and made all the people around to benefit from the same intervention.
“We have come because we want to learn how Nigeria is doing it and we are preparing for a similar programme in our country,” he said.
In her remark, the Special Adviser to the President on Social Investment Programme, Mrs Maryam Uwais, commended the delegation for the study tour.
She said that the visit was an indication that Nigeria was on the right path in its poverty alleviation programme.
Uwais disclosed that Congolese government had requested to send a delegation on study tour of how Nigeria was able to build its national social register.
“We have to depart from the idea of just collecting list from different people at various levels of government in the selection of those to benefit from our social intervention programme.
“Our poverty indices are very poor and we really need to be more strategic and methodical about how we identify the poorest people in our communities.
“So, we set up a tripartite method looking at the poverty mapping of each state, selecting the poorest communities and local government first.
“We train our civil servants at state and local government levels to be able to enumerate and engage with people at the community level,” she said.
She added the social register was developed by engaging civil servants at state and local governments to focus on the poorest in the communities. (NAN)