The Federal Government’s National Emergency Relief and Stabilisation Intervention (NERSI), which promises ₦50,000 to selected vulnerable households, is a welcome intervention at a time millions of Nigerians are struggling with the rising cost of living.
Particularly commendable is the government’s decision to publicly explain the payment process, identify authorised financial service providers and warn citizens against fraud. Such openness is important in rebuilding public confidence in government relief programmes.
However, announcing a transparent payment procedure is not the same as guaranteeing a transparent selection process.
The government says beneficiaries will be drawn from the National Social Register and verified national identity records, but Nigerians deserve more information about the specific eligibility criteria, the number of households expected to benefit and how poverty levels will determine selection.
Without these details, the intervention risks appearing like a programme for a fortunate few rather than a carefully targeted relief effort for those who need it most.
Although the government says beneficiaries will be selected based on need and distributed across the six geopolitical zones, it must demonstrate how this commitment will work in practice. How frequently will the records be updated? What safeguards exist against political interference, manipulation of beneficiary lists and the exclusion of genuinely vulnerable households? These are questions the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction must answer.
The existence of a payment system does not automatically guarantee that assistance reaches the intended recipients.
Therefore equally important is the monitoring of disbursements. The government says independent checks will be conducted during payment cycles, but it must make the monitoring framework clear. There should be an effective mechanism for auditing payments, investigating complaints, identifying duplicate beneficiaries and sanctioning officials or intermediaries found diverting funds.
There is also a security concern. While the government has outlined how genuine beneficiaries will receive notifications, the use of SMS messages and mobile wallets creates opportunities for fraudsters to exploit desperate Nigerians.
Reports of fraudulent messages circulating around the intervention are a warning that the government must take seriously.
More fundamentally, the government must recognise the limitations of cash transfers. While ₦50,000 could provide temporary relief to a struggling household, it cannot independently reverse the erosion of purchasing power or address the rising prices of food, transportation, electricity and other essentials.
Relief payments must therefore complement broader economic measures capable of stabilising market prices, improving household incomes and restoring the purchasing power of ordinary Nigerians.
Ultimately, the success of NERSI should not be measured by the amount announced or the number of SMS notifications sent, but by how many genuinely vulnerable households receive the money without interference and whether the intervention makes a measurable difference in their lives. Nigerians need relief that reaches them, not another government announcement that looks impressive on paper but falls short in implementation.
