Senate To Probe Poverty Eradication Agencies

The Senate, has directed its committee on  Poverty Alleviation and National Planning to investigate the operations of the nation’s poverty eradication agencies and the level of their impact on the Nigerian  masses.

The upper chambers, expressing  dissatisfaction  over the poor implementation of poverty intervention programs in the country , stressed the need for a new approach in the poverty eradication strategies..

Following  a motion  sponsored by Senator Olubunmi Adetumbi, the Senate directed its Committee on Poverty Alleviation and National Planning to immediately commence an investigation into  effectiveness of the various government interventions and make appropriate recommendations for a way forward.

Senators were in agreement that the country had not followed up on the implementation on developmental policies available, especially the abandonment of the agricultural sector.

Presenting the motion, Senator Adetunmbi,  noted that Nigeria had the lowest GDP among oil producing countries and occupies the unenviable status of low human  development category with Angola slightly ahead of Nigeria in GDP/capita, adult illiteracy, primary school enrolment and health adjusted life expectancy.

”The impressive annual real GPD growth rate averaged 9.2 per cent, between 2009 and 2010. Correspondingly over the same period, absolute poverty incidence has remained high, rising from 42.7per cent in 1992 to 65.6per cent in 1996.

“Although it declined and averaged 54.7per cent in 2004, it recently shot up to 60.9per cent in 2010 according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

Nneka Amaechi-Nnadi, Abuja