Nigeria’s Social Safety Net “Inefficient”, Just 44% of Benefits Go to the Poor – World Bank

The World Bank has flagged a major flaw in Nigeria’s social‑protection system, warning that more than half of the beneficiaries are poor, yet less than half of the total money actually lands in poor households.

In its latest report, “The State of Social Safety Nets in Nigeria”, the lender reveals a stark disparity: 56 % of programme recipients are poor, but only 44 % of the benefits flow to them, exposing deep inequality in how aid is distributed.

“The share of benefits going to the poor is lower than the share of beneficiaries that are poor,” the World Bank noted.

“While 56 percent of the beneficiaries are poor, only 44 percent of the total safety net benefits go to the poor.”

This mismatch stems largely from the way benefits are calculated most schemes set a fixed amount per household, and poorer families tend to be larger, so the per‑capita value shrinks.

The report cites the National Home‑Grown School Feeding Programme (NHGSFP) as an example of a programme that could do better because it targets children individually rather than households, it is less prone to the “household‑size” distortion.

However, its reach is limited: “NHGSFP only benefits children in grades 1 to 3, and does not yet have full coverage, which limits the number of children per household that can benefit from the program.”

Beyond the numbers, the World Bank points to systemic inefficiencies.

“Benefit levels for most programs, including the NASSP cash‑transfer scheme, are determined at the household level… the same benefit amount is divided over a larger number of people living in poorer households,” the report explains, highlighting how design flaws dilute impact.

Analysts now urge sweeping reform, calling for real‑time data integration, sharper household targeting, and tighter coordination between federal and state agencies.

Earlier, the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) and the IMF have warned that Nigeria’s safety net is too weak to cushion vulnerable citizens from the harsh fallout of ongoing economic reforms.