Nigeria’s newly inaugurated minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr Betta Edu has assured Nigerians that the federal government is commitment to ensured that 133 million Nigerians are pulled out of poverty in the next few years.
Edu made this disclosure on Monday when she assumed office in Abuja and held maiden meetings with the Chief executive officers of the agencies under the ministry.
She reassured Nigerians that she will work tirelessly to uphold accountability and openness while serving as Minister.
She went on to say that the ministry will reach its goal by launching a variety of programmes and projects that would help millions of Nigerians escape poverty.
“What is most important is that we will keep our focus on lifting 133 million Nigerians out of poverty.
“We can do it in phases, a step at a time, because with determination and strong-will nothing is impossible.
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“We will also achieve the feat with the strong political backing from His Excellency, President Bola Tinubu and every member of the cabinet.
”We will play down on politics, we are here to face the real business of governance,” she said.
The minister, who described as unacceptable the alarming rate of poverty in the country, said all hands must be on deck to address the situation.
”Different sources of data suggest that we have a population of 200 million Nigerians, which I think we are more than that.
”Of this population, the sources indicated that 136 million are extremely poor and that is unacceptable.
”We need to bring smiles back to the faces of Nigerians. We must reach out to those who are underserved and renew their hope.
“While doing this, we must ensure that we will increase our efforts, be very sincere, transparent and accountable,” Edu added.
In his welcome address, the permanent secretary of the ministry, Dr Nasir Sani-Gwarzo, expressed commitment and loyalty to the Minister in her quest to deliver on the mandate of the ministry.
Gwarzo noted that the event coincided with the third year anniversary of the ministry.