The Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning has announced the reimbursement of funds to 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) under the Nigeria Community Action for Resilience and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES) Programme. This initiative, originally the Nigeria COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES) Programme, is supported by the World Bank with a credit portfolio of $750 million.

The NG-CARES Programme aims to expand access to livelihood support and food security services for poor and vulnerable households and firms. It operates under a Programme for Results (PforR) Intervention, ensuring that states and the FCT receive reimbursements based on the successful investment of resources and production of results in line with agreed protocols. These reimbursements are provided following verification by the Federal Government through an Independent Verification Exercise.

The Federal Government has reimbursed a total of N438,368,915,030.24 to 34 states and the FCT after the Third Independent Verification Assessment. The breakdown of the amounts reimbursed to each state is as follows:

1. Zamfara – N49,182,347,834.58
2. Nasarawa – N27,204,679,444.17
3. Plateau – N26,312,588,262.79
4. Gombe – N25,305,166,261.04
5. Kebbi – N21,589,480,398.09
6. Cross River – N20,670,241,709.19
7. Rivers – N19,517,766,804.45
8. Niger – N17,769,905,838.59
9. Adamawa – N17,535,952,985.60
10. Katsina – N15,455,420,486.35
11. Imo – N15,108,426,334.41
12. Sokoto – N14,177,508,862.06
13. Ondo – N13,925,262,355.18
14. Delta – N13,268,320,155.81
15. Abia – N12,175,577,893.70
16. Bayelsa – N10,830,587,695.70
17. Yobe – N10,172,244,387.67
18. Kwara – N9,915,101,215.91
19. Osun – N9,562,512,549.27
20. Bauchi – N7,304,665,094.92
21. Kogi – N6,903,713,160.77
22. FCT – N6,773,236,717.84
23. Ebonyi – N6,255,864,530.97
24. Enugu – N6,191,952,222.93
25. Kano – N6,154,448,839.34
26. Oyo – N5,966,675,258.19
27. Borno – N5,808,270,785.50
28. Jigawa – N5,770,132,061.00
29. Lagos – N5,609,606,730.14
30. Taraba – N5,508,762,972.80
31. Ekiti – N5,507,202,258.33
32. Edo – N5,122,103,650.09
33. Benue – N4,908,421,973.10
34. Akwa Ibom – N2,430,830,532.46
35. Ogun – N2,125,609,028.52

Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Honorable Atiku Bagudu, commended President Muhammadu Buhari for the reforms introduced by his administration, which enabled the states and the FCT to invest massively in NG-CARES, yielding this outstanding result. Bagudu also praised the state governors and the Honourable Minister of the FCT for their commitment to building resilience among poor and vulnerable Nigerians.

NG-CARES is a key component of the “Renewed Hope Agenda” and a cornerstone for economic resilience and sustainability among the poor and vulnerable in underserved communities across Nigeria.