In recent years, the government of Nigeria and its development partners have sought to
develop social protection instruments as a mechanism to tackle high rates of poverty and
vulnerability in the country and to support development progress in both the economic and the
social spheres. As such, social protection is emerging as a policy objective, with cash transfers
identified at the federal level and to some extent the state level as a potentially important
instrument to achieve these goals.
This report examines the role of cash transfers in Nigeria and discusses considerations for the
appropriateness and feasibility of different types of cash transfers in the Nigerian context. It is
part of a project funded by the UN Children‘s Fund (UNICEF) Nigeria that aims to support the
government of Nigeria in realising its overarching development strategy (Vision 20: 2020) and
developing a national social protection strategy.