Nigeria’s National Social Register has now captured more than 20 million households and over 77 million individuals across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory as the Federal Government moves to strengthen the country’s social protection system.
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The National Social Safety Net Coordinating Office (NASSCO) disclosed this during a stakeholder engagement with Local Government Chairmen in Abuja, where officials stressed the need for credible data, transparency and stronger grassroots coordination in delivering support to poor and vulnerable Nigerians.
The National Social Register was created by the Federal Government to identify households eligible for social intervention programmes including cash transfers, food support and other poverty reduction initiatives.
Speaking at the engagement, NASSCO said efforts are ongoing to integrate the National Identification Number (NIN) into the register to improve data integrity, eliminate duplication and ensure interventions get to the right beneficiaries.
The agency noted that the database has continued to expand significantly over the years, with local governments expected to play a critical role in monitoring, verification and accountability because they remain the closest level of government to the people.
Governor Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State said social protection programmes must be transparent and properly targeted to achieve meaningful impact.
“It is therefore imperative that social protection interventions are better coordinated, data-driven, transparent and effectively targeted to ensure that limited resources reach those who genuinely need it,” he said.
Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Bagudu, said the programmes are designed to operate at ward level to improve monitoring and beneficiary identification.
“All these are programs that are intended to operate in each wards so that the registration of beneficiaries is ward specific, the monitoring is ward specific, and then more importantly, what more can be done should be ward specific,” Bagudu stated.
National Programme Manager of the National Social Safety Nets, Funmi Olotu, said the government is working towards building a more reliable and inclusive system that leaves no vulnerable Nigerian behind.
“We are building a system that ensures no vulnerable household is invisible, no intervention is misdirected, and no Nigerian is left behind. This effort requires partnership, it requires alignment between federal, states and local governments,” she said.
NASSCO also emphasised that stronger collaboration between federal, state and local governments is necessary to improve accountability and ensure support reaches citizens who need it most.
The Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) pledged support for the continuous update and verification of the register.
President Emeritus of ALGON, Kola Alabi, described the partnership between ALGON and NASSCO as a major step toward strengthening grassroots governance and social protection delivery across the country.
National President of ALGON, Bello Lawal, added that local governments remain central to poverty reduction efforts because of their closeness to communities and vulnerable populations.
NASSCO maintained that the continued expansion and verification of the National Social Register will improve the delivery of social protection programmes and help government interventions reach millions of vulnerable Nigerians more effectively.
