Manny Ita –
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has formally declared 2026 as Nigeria’s “Year of Social Development and Family,” unveiling an expanded economic and social intervention programme designed to support an estimated 25 million women across the country.
The declaration was made during a federal executive policy briefing in Abuja, where the president said the initiative would consolidate existing social investment schemes while introducing new family-centred and women-focused economic measures. Tinubu described the programme as a strategic pillar of his administration’s broader development agenda, linking social stability directly to economic growth and national cohesion.
According to the presidency, the expanded programme will focus on conditional cash transfers, access to low-interest credit, maternal and child healthcare support, skills acquisition, and digital financial inclusion for women in both urban and rural communities. Priority beneficiaries are expected to include low-income households, female-headed families, informal sector workers, and women-led micro and small enterprises.
“Social development is not charity; it is an investment in national productivity and stability,” Tinubu said. “When women and families are supported, communities are strengthened, and the economy becomes more resilient.”
Officials said the initiative would build on structures created under previous social investment programmes but with enhanced funding, tighter monitoring, and improved data systems to reduce leakages and ensure transparency. The government plans to deploy a unified social registry to identify beneficiaries, working in collaboration with state governments and local authorities.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, said the programme aligns with fiscal reforms already underway, noting that resources freed from subsidy and efficiency reforms would partly fund the expanded interventions. “Our objective is to ensure that growth translates into measurable improvements in household welfare, particularly for women who remain the backbone of Nigeria’s informal economy,” he said.
The Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, described the declaration as a policy milestone, stating that it signaled renewed political commitment to gender-responsive budgeting and family welfare. “This is an opportunity to move from fragmented interventions to a coordinated national framework that truly empowers Nigerian women,” she said.
Government sources indicated that implementation guidelines and budgetary details would be presented to the National Assembly as part of the 2026 appropriation process. Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms are expected to involve civil society organisations and development partners to ensure accountability.
Analysts say the success of the initiative will depend on effective execution, sustained funding, and cooperation between federal and subnational governments. While welcoming the focus on women and families, some policy experts cautioned that outcomes would need to be clearly defined and publicly reported to avoid past pitfalls associated with large-scale social programmes.
The presidency said further announcements, including pilot projects and timelines, would be made in the coming months as preparations for the 2026 programme year advance.
