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Tag: #NCTO

  • NCTO digitalised payment system to revolutionise, enhance effective implementation

    The National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO) says the introduction of the Federal Government digitalised payment system for beneficiaries of cash transfer will revolutionise and enhance effective implementation of the programme in the country.

    The Interim Head, National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO), Dr Ibraheem Adam, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja.

    Adam, who attended a virtual International Conference recently, said the digitisation was going to open up the reach of those in the rural areas so as to find economic activities thriving for them.

    According to him, people can now do transactions freely, so this is another financial subway created for beneficiaries by making payment anywhere and by so doing will help in revolutionalising the programme in Nigeria.

    “Before now, we have a process in place that is electronic and trackable to the last mile but government felt to go further because in the initial arrangement, the Payment Service Provider (PSP), some of which are mobile money operators, micro finance banks, have credible processes.

    They have national reach by creating a temporary wallet that once payment is done, it’s been discarded.

    “But with this digitisation, each beneficiary now have a permanent NUBAN account with a bank and this accounts besides the purpose of our programme can be used for other beneficiary purposes.

    “We also have a process in place when this money goes into the account after crediting, will be able to print debit cards for these beneficiaries which provides them access to their funds either in the banking hall, at the ATM point or the POS,” he said.

    He commended President Muhammadu Buhari and the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya Farouq, for the initiative at reducing the poverty level in the country.

    Adam added that majority of the beneficiaries who reside in the rural areas found POS as the most appealing.

    He said that the office realised the deficit of financial infrastructure in the rural areas, hence has been able to aid the POS network agents in those areas to move so that they could provide these funds available for the beneficiaries.

    He, therefore, said that the office was already talking with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on the e-Naira platform to ease payments for the beneficiaries. (NAN)

  • NCTO digitalised payment system to revolutionise, enhance effective implementation

    The National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO) says the introduction of the Federal Government digitalised payment system for beneficiaries of cash transfer will revolutionise and enhance effective implementation of the programme in the country.

    The Interim Head, National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO), Dr Ibraheem Adam, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja.

    Adam, who attended a virtual International Conference recently, said the digitisation was going to open up the reach of those in the rural areas so as to find economic activities thriving for them.

    According to him, people can now do transactions freely, so this is another financial subway created for beneficiaries by making payment anywhere and by so doing will help in revolutionalising the programme in Nigeria.

    “Before now, we have a process in place that is electronic and trackable to the last mile but government felt to go further because in the initial arrangement, the Payment Service Provider (PSP), some of which are mobile money operators, micro finance banks, have credible processes.

    They have national reach by creating a temporary wallet that once payment is done, it’s been discarded.

    “But with this digitisation, each beneficiary now have a permanent NUBAN account with a bank and this accounts besides the purpose of our programme can be used for other beneficiary purposes.

    “We also have a process in place when this money goes into the account after crediting, will be able to print debit cards for these beneficiaries which provides them access to their funds either in the banking hall, at the ATM point or the POS,” he said.

    He commended President Muhammadu Buhari and the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajiya Sadiya Farouq, for the initiative at reducing the poverty level in the country.

    Adam added that majority of the beneficiaries who reside in the rural areas found POS as the most appealing.

    He said that the office realised the deficit of financial infrastructure in the rural areas, hence has been able to aid the POS network agents in those areas to move so that they could provide these funds available for the beneficiaries.

    He, therefore, said that the office was already talking with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on the e-Naira platform to ease payments for the beneficiaries. (NAN)

  • Cash Transfer: Beneficiaries hit 2m – NCTO

    By NAN

    The National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO), says the number of beneficiaries of the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) of the Federal Government has reached about two million as the programme closes by Dec. 31.

    The Interim Head, NCTO, Dr Ibraheem Adam, stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the sidelines of a virtual International Financial Conference in Abuja on Thursday.

    Adam, however, said that the programme which commenced in 2016 would come to an end by Dec. 31.

    He said that the office targeted and enrolled beneficiaries from the rural areas across 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) through community-based targeting system.

    He also said that the programme was so far able to reach 609 local government, 6,272 wards and 48,789 communities.

    Adam added that the programme had reached a total of 1,940,325 beneficiaries in the National Beneficiary Register from inception to date.

    “We came in at a good time in the history of Nigeria when the project we superintended over has the mandate to reduce poverty, and as you may know, our level of poverty is around 60 per cent of the population.

    “So the programme actually came in to reduce poverty and enhance human capital development; and for us to do that, the tools we are using is the cash transfer, which is an extension of stipends to beneficiaries.

    For this to happen effectively and transparently, the Federal Government has introduced a digital payment system and this entails the creation of bank accounts for beneficiaries.

    “We have about 2 million beneficiaries that have been credited with cash into their own personal NUBAN account created by the banks for easy link to the ongoing international financial inclusion conference,” he said.

    While commending President Muhammadu Buhari and the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajia Safiya Umar Farouq, Adam said that the money came in at a time poverty became endemic in the history of Nigeria.

    He said the cash transfer policy would remove 100 million Nigerians out of poverty.

    He added that after giving the money, the beneficiaries were mobilised and trained on how to save and manage their money.

    “We bring them into groups where they do rotational savings and contribution which metamorphose into  cooperative societies which they also own and by doing that they can also empower themselves.

    The beneficiaries are mentored to properly utilise the knowledge gained in the cause of the capacity building  at their door step.

    “The objective of the cash transfer is to basically improve household consumption, increase utilisation of health and nutrition services, improved environmental sanitation and management among others.

    The interim Head also said that the cash Transfer had contributed in reducing the rate of school drip outs as it had helped in the retention and completion of education by children of beneficiaries.

    “The aspect of human capital was taken on a pilot level and we just did 11 states and in these 11 states, we have feedback that there is growth in school attendance for school children.

    “And this is complimenting other government programmes like the school feeding that is also helping to make sure that children are in school,” he added. (NAN)

  • NGO strengthens collaboration with NCTO on social safety-nets project


    Safe the Children Nigeria, (SCN), an NGO has continued to strengthen its collaboration with the National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO) in pushing the vision of the National Social Safety-Nets Project for the country.

    The National Programme Coordinator, NCTO, Hajiya Halima Shehu made this known in a statement, made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Monday.

    Shehu also acknowledged the SCN for always making itself available whenever the office requested support.  

    She said that the collaboration was aimed at improving household consumption, increase the utilisation of health and nutrition services, improve school enrolment and attendance.

    She said that it would also improve on the environmental sanitation and management of the project as the beneficiaries were encouraged to engage in sustainable livelihood.

    She further promised future support and collaboration for the National Social Safety-Nets Project.

    Also, Mr Kayode Ajumobi, the National Programme Manager, SCN, while congratulating Shehu on assumption of office as head of the organisation, thanked her for the existing relationship and proper utilisation of the technical support.

    NCTO is responsible for the implementation of the Federal Government Conditional Cash Transfer Programme also known as Household Uplifting Programme-Conditional Cash Transfer (HUP-CCT) across the country. (NAN)