The government said it plans to restructure and expand the N-Power scheme.
The Nigerian government, on Saturday, announced the indefinite suspension of the N-Power scheme.
The scheme, initiated in 2016 by the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari under the National Social Investment Programme, aimed at empowering the youth.
Though the programme has been touted as one of the most impactful legacies of the administration, the incumbent Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu, has alleged many irregularities in the scheme.
Ms Edu, while speaking during an interview on TVC News on Saturday, said the decision to suspend the scheme was a result of some identified irregularities within the scheme.
Alleged irregularities
Ms Edu noted that while some of the beneficiaries are usually not found in their place of assignments, others ought to have exited the programme since 2022 but are still on the payroll
“We must go back to look into N-Power and understand what the problems are so we will basically suspend the programme for now until we are done with proper investigation into the utilisation of funds into the scheme,” she said.
“We want to know how many persons are basically on the programme right now, how many persons are owed, the amount they are owed.”
She said the government plans to totally restructure and expand the programme.