The administration of President Bola Tinubu has claimed that it has spent over N600 billion on cash transfers to vulnerable citizens, adding that the lives of Nigerians have been better over the past three years.
Bernard Doro, the minister of humanitarian affairs and poverty reduction, made the claim in an interview with Channels TV on Wednesday.
Asked how many people Mr Tinubu’s government had lifted out of poverty since it assumed office, Mr Doro said, “We’ve done over N600 billion in cash transfers to support vulnerable Nigerians and reached about 10 million households.”
He added, “We launched a vocational skill acquisition programme where we trained about 18,000 Nigerians, empowered them with starters kits and stipends.”
When asked if the lives of Nigerians are better under the Tinubu-led government, Mr Doro said, “confidently, I will say.” But when asked to provide data to back up his claim, Mr Doro said, “forget about figures.”
According to the World Bank’s Nigeria Development Update report, 139 million Nigerians still live in poverty amid food inflation and insecurity.