Nigeria needs N7 trillion yearly to adequately fund social security system
AS part of solutions for Nigeria to end its poverty trap, the country requires about N5 to N7 trillion yearly to fund the operation of a thorough well- managed social security system.
Experts are of the view that Nigeria with a Gross Domestic Product ( GDP) of $ 440 billion and being the largest economy in Africa, but caught in a deep poverty cycle, rethinking social protection that is wellorganised, expertly planned and supported by national law remained necessary.
A report on ‘ Nigeria’s Poverty Trap - And How To End It’ by the Institute for Governance and Economic Transformation ( IGET), identified poorly designed social protection measures, limited coverage, lack of consistency, lack of data and corruption as some of the causes of inadequate social protection.
It stated that such a comprehensive social protection system needed to be independently and expertly examined, reviewed and monitored to stop leaks caused by fraud and corruption. According to the report, implementing the measures while incorporat
• Bad governance, unchecked population growth, others fueling poverty trap ing structural reforms will sectarian interests than on a increase the chances of consincere desire to end poverty. trolling the rise of poverty as a According to them, a broken “growth industry” in the and corrupt political system short term, while structural has created the wrong priorireforms will start to show ties. results in the medium term. They lamented that sectari
The report, which was an interests and the domiauthored by IGET Founder nant partisan political and President, Kingsley reward system combine to Moghalu and a Research supersede knowledge and Fellow at IGET, Damian Ude, competence in public policy. said the country’s poverty They said it has also steadily trap was brought about by a undermined state capacity failure of nationhood and and state institutions, governance. encouraging knowledge
It listed reasons such as gaps and incompetence in inequality and marginalisakey decision- making position, conflict, lack of educations. tion and skills; lack of employIt recalled the World Bank ment or other means of supreport that 95 million port, high food prices that Nigerians will be considered reduce their purchasing extremely poor by 2022, up power, the effects of climate from the current national change such as floods and average of 89 million or 43 droughts, lack of savings, per cent of the population. inadequate social welfare and The calculation, which they social security programmes said is based on the extreme provided by the government poverty mark of less than and unchecked population $ 2.15 a day, shows that more growth as reasons people live than 90 per cent of in poverty. Nigerians live in poverty
They argued that it was when compared to the $ 5.5 because the political elite had daily poverty limit. placed a considerably greater The report stated that emphasis on self- serving state Nigeria’s unchecked populacapture for patronage and tion growth in the midst of the current high poverty rates also contributed to the perpetuation of the poverty trap, making it intergenerational in nature.
It stated that if the tendency were not reversed, it would have detrimental effects on Nigeria’s future.
Describing it as a “Gendered poverty” that is caused and maintained by gender- specific issues such as gender inequality, discrimination and exclusion, a significant component of Nigeria’s poverty trap.
At current trends, it said Nigeria will not be able to end extreme poverty for 35 million people by 2025, or for 100 million Nigerians within the next 10 years, as indicated in the National Development Plan and other policy pronouncements by the government.
The authors advised that the country requires a new elite development consensus on development that cuts through partisan political and other divides, as well as a unity of purpose that is focused on the human development of its 216 million citizens, in order to start making meaningful progress in the eradication of poverty.