The Kogi Government says it has started registration of the poor and vulnerable economically impacted by COVID-19 pandemic for the rapid response register (RRR) in the state.
This was announced in a statement made available by the Coordinator, Kogi State Operation Coordinating Unit (SOCU), Social Safety Net (SSN) office, Dr Noah Alilu, on behalf of the Honourable Commissioner for Finance, Budget and Economic Planning in the state, in Lokoja on Friday.
He stressed that the RRR became imperative given the need to articulate a database of the vulnerable in dire need of support from government.
The Rapid Response Register was designed as a shock response framework by the National Social Safety Net Program (NASSP) in collaboration with the World Bank to cushion the effect of COVID-19 pandemic.
Individuals and households in the RRR will be paid a monthly stipend for at least six months under an expanded Cash Transfer Programme (CCT) of the Federal Government. This will boost their consumption and help to build resilience.
Mobile phone numbers of applicants, validated and deemed eligible for assistance, would be linked to digitized bank accounts to receive N5,000 monthly stipend.
”This is to inform all Kogites that National Social Safety Nets Coordinating Office (NASSCO) in collaboration with the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development and World Bank, have gone live on RRR registration in Kogi State.
”Approved LGAs, Wards and communities has commenced the exercise live by dialing the assigned USSD codes as applied to their respective LGAs to get registered to benefit from COVID-19 Cash Transfer roll out by the Federal Government,” he said.
According to Alilu, the exercise is for everyone and it cut across 52 wards out of 239 political wards in Kogi State as selected and approved by NASSCO and the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs Abuja.
Alilu added that the extension of the exercise to the remaining communities, wards and LGAs would commence after the first round.
