IMF says Nigeria’s social safety net suffers from limited coverage, weak targeting

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said that Nigeria’s social safety net, which was created to support poor and vulnerable people in the country, suffers from limited coverage and weak targeting.

The IMF said this in its ‘Nigeria Staff Report for the 2021 Article IV Consultation’ report.

According to the organisation, “Nigeria needs to improve coverage and efficiency of its social assistance programmes. As of 2018, around a fifth of the vulnerable population (the bottom 60 per cent of the population) receives some kind of social assistance with a small fraction receiving cash transfers.

“Despite recent improvements, for example, adding one million households to the social registry, Nigeria’s social safety net still suffers from limited coverage and weak targeting.”

The fund recommended a cumulative increase in social spending by about one per cent of the Gross Domestic Product for 2022 to 2026.

It said, “The authorities, in collaboration with the World Bank, are developing a well-targeted cash transfer program to support those affected by the removal of fuel subsidies and strengthen the social protection systems

“Measures include developing and utilising the National Social Registry for adequate beneficiary selection, improving coordination and integration between state and national registers, and establishing a strong information management system.

“Staff supported these measures and recommended increasing social spending by up to 1 per cent of GDP cumulatively for 2022-2026 (around 0.2 per cent of GDP each year) for well-targeted programmes.”