The Federal Government has disbursed another round of payment of two months’ arrears of stipends to over 74,000 beneficiaries of its Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programme in Kogi State.
The CCT is the disbursement of the N5,000 monthly stipend to the poor and vulnerable households under the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP) of the Federal Government.
Hajia Falilat Abdurasaq, the Head of Kogi State CCT Unit, disclosed this to journalists at the payment venue at LGEA School, Mopo, Isanlu, Yagba East Local Government Area.
She noted that the Federal Government had recently introduced a digital mode of payment of stipends to beneficiaries to replace the usual table payment.
She added that the Federal Government had in August disbursed N20,000 each to over 74,000 beneficiaries in the state as January to April 2021 arrears.
She added that the payment of N10,000 to each beneficiary being arrears of May and June 2021 commenced on Thursday, October 7, and has been completed.
She stressed that the essence of the cash transfer was to fulfil President Muhammadu Buhari’s promise to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty.
Abdulrasaq commended the federal government for digitalising the payment, saying it was a great relief to the beneficiaries and CCT officials considering the challenges encountered during table payment.
According to her, the disbursement is digitalised to mitigate the risk involved in carrying huge cash about and the gathering of many vulnerable old women in one place and under harsh weather conditions.
She further commended the efforts of the National Programme Coordinator, Hajiya Halima Shehu; and the Honourable Minister for Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya Umar Farouq, for initiating the digital payment and ensuring hitch-free processes.
Also speaking to newsmen at one of the cash-out points in Lokoja, Mr Stephen Mohammed, the Team Lead of Fortis Mobile Money, a company responsible for the disbursement of CCT in Kogi, said that the digital payment had come to stay.
”We are no longer test-running the digital payment but it has come to stay; though beneficiaries seem not to understand, we will not relent to keep educating them.
”We are sensitising the beneficiaries on the need to accept and adopt the digital payment of their stipends, but sometimes change is difficult.
”We will keep educating the beneficiaries because of their level of understanding until they adapt to the system,” he said.
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