- The Nigerian Senate has approved a bill to relocate the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA) from the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs to the Presidency
- The amendment aims to enhance standardization, transparency, effectiveness, and accountability in social investment programs in alignment with President Bola Tinubu’s agenda
The Nigerian Senate has moved significantly to relocate the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA) from the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation to the Presidency.
On Tuesday, the Red Chamber approved a bill for a second reading, known as the NSIPA Act 2023, sponsored by Senate Leader Micheal Opeyemi Bamidele.
Specifically, this bill aims to amend various sections of the NSIPA Act 2023, including Sections 9(3), 14(1), 21(1), 22(1), 26(1), and 33. If this proposed legislation is passed and subsequently signed into law, it will place the agency “directly under the supervision of the President.”
Bamidele further emphasized that this amendment is intended to ensure that social investment programs are standardized, transparent, effective, and accountable.
He clarified, “This amendment aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope mantra, which prioritizes standardizing, ensuring transparency, effectiveness, and accountability in the structure of program delivery and promoting coordination and synergy among key government agencies.”
Senator Ahmad Lawan, representing Yobe North, pointed out that its implementation was flawed despite the 9th Senate’s earlier passage of the bill. He noted that support for those in remote rural areas was not reaching the intended beneficiaries.
“To achieve social inclusion, funds were distributed, but the beneficiaries lacked bank accounts,” he said. “After passing this bill, we must now ensure full participation to ensure that the beneficiaries who need support are effectively captured, thereby satisfying the National Assembly’s mandate.”
The NSIPA Act was originally enacted in May 2023 to address socio-economic disparities and alleviate poverty among Nigerians. NSIP was initially established in 2016 during the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari. The program is structured around four pillars: the N-POWER Programme, Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme, National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme, and the Conditional Cash Transfer Programme, each designed to uplift the poorest and most vulnerable Nigerians to help them achieve an acceptable standard of living, regardless of their location within the nation.
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