The National Economic Council (NEC) has endorsed the Revised National Social Protection Policy (NSPP) 2026–2030 and urged state governments to align their social protection policies, laws, budgets and implementation plans with the revised national framework.
The decision was taken on Thursday at the 160th meeting of NEC, chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima in Abuja.
The revised policy provides a national framework for strengthening social protection coordination, financing, implementation, monitoring and accountability across the federation.
It also proposes the establishment of a National Social Protection Council to provide overarching oversight for the coordination and implementation of social protection programmes nationwide.
Under the proposed framework, the council will be chaired by the Vice President, while the Ministers of Budget and Economic Planning, Labour and Employment, and Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction will serve as vice chairpersons.
The Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning will serve as the secretariat of the council, while six governors representing the six geopolitical zones will serve as members.
Presenting the policy to the council, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, highlighted the need for stronger coordination and alignment among federal and state governments to improve the effectiveness of social protection interventions.
NEC subsequently urged states to align their policies, legislation, budgets and implementation plans with the Revised National Social Protection Policy.
Speaking at the meeting, Vice President Shettima charged NEC to sustain ongoing government reforms until their benefits translate into jobs, stronger purchasing power, increased business confidence and improved living conditions for Nigerians.
“There is no doubt that a serious government is measured by the matters it refuses to abandon. While attention may reveal a problem, continuity determines whether the problem yields to policy,” Shettima said.
He stressed that economic gains must ultimately be reflected in the lives of citizens.
“Macroeconomic progress must therefore continue its passage into jobs, purchasing power, business confidence and stronger subnational economies, because numbers become politically meaningful when citizens recognise themselves in their improvement,” he said.
The Vice President urged the council to maintain follow-through on existing programmes and commitments, warning that new priorities should not displace unfinished government responsibilities.
“Continuity is a form of accountability: yesterday’s promise still deserves a place on today’s table, and no new priority absolves us of an old responsibility,” Shettima said.
He added that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had placed on NEC the responsibility of making cooperation across the federation productive and converting government policies into tangible outcomes for Nigerians.
“A government that remembers earns the confidence of its people because its promises do not expire when the microphones are switched off,” the Vice President said.