According to the Institute For Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR), social protection is a crucial policy that can help address some of the underlying issues causing Nigeria’s social and economic crises.
The description was presented in Abuja at a conference on social protection and economic uncertainties in fragile and conflict-affected societies, which was organized by the Conflict Research Network West Africa (CORN), by the institute’s director general, Dr. Joseph Ochogwu.
He clarified that social protection has developed into a key tool of policy that the Nigerian federal government employs to address issues of inequality throughout the nation since 2015.
According to our research, the strategic conflict assessment of Nigeria and a number of other studies, the main causes of conflict in the nation are unemployment and poverty.
“When social protection policy development is implemented as a social intervention program.
Ochogwu also mentioned that the goal of social protection is to bring vulnerable individuals into the government’s orbit.
“We are taking this conference on because we think it will help us highlight social protection as a policy that needs a lot more empirical data to guide practice and policy.
“Clearly, depending on the population group we are targeting alongside, there are gaps in the way social protection is implemented.
The British High Commission’s Development Director, Chris Pycroft, also spoke, noting that social protection in Nigeria has come a long way in the past ten years, both at the federal and state levels.
In addition to securing domestic funding, we have assisted the national and local governments in putting social protection-related laws and policies into effect and making improvements to them.
“We anticipate that the strong political mandate outlined in President Tinubu’s government manifesto will continue to drive this progress.”
“We take a patient-centered approach, assisting governments in establishing national social security programs, and pursuing domestic funding to make social security self-sufficient.
Cristine Munduate, the UNICEF Country Representative for Nigeria, stated in her speech that the organization’s commitment to Nigeria is unwavering.
“Our efforts in this nation demonstrate our commitment to helping the most disadvantaged people, especially in areas affected by conflict.
“We work to guarantee that these kids get the support, instruction, medical attention, and sustenance they require via social safety nets run by the government.
“We need to support the government in defining social protection measures that are pertinent to the needs of the citizens and address the urgent issue of economic uncertainty in societies that are fragile and affected by conflict.
“Families in such regions face financial hardships that compound the already formidable challenges,” the speaker stated.