The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Dr Bernard M. Doro, has received a delegation led by Hon. Bridget Anne Afor, a young elected politician representing Sweden at the European Union Committee of the Regions, to explore Nigeria’s approach to poverty reduction and its potential relevance to addressing irregular migration.
Receiving the delegation, Doro said while regular migration could contribute to personal development and knowledge transfer, irregular migration, particularly through dangerous routes, should be discouraged.
He said Nigeria must also create opportunities that would enable young people to participate meaningfully in the global economy without necessarily having to relocate.
“What regular migration does for us is that it develops us and helps us see life from a different perspective. So, this speaks to the benefit of migration. What we do not want to see is irregular migration,” the minister said.
Doro explained that the ministry’s Humanitarian and Poverty Reduction Strategy (OHOPRS) is designed to move vulnerable populations from repeated humanitarian assistance towards sustainable pathways out of poverty by linking humanitarian response with social protection and poverty reduction.
“The philosophy behind it is moving people from repeated palliatives to pathways, pathways towards economic inclusion,” he said.
The minister said the system incorporates unified social registries and the National Poverty Intelligence Lab, which will use data and analytics to improve targeting, programme design and poverty-graduation interventions.
He added that the ministry was working towards a proof of concept targeting 12,000 vulnerable households to determine effective pathways before a wider scale-up.
According to him, the system is designed to be interoperable with relevant government sectors, development partners and subnational governments, enabling data to support more coordinated and evidence-based interventions for poor and vulnerable Nigerians.
In her remarks, Afor expressed enthusiasm about the minister’s emphasis on youth inclusion, noting that young elected politicians were also an important component of the European Union Committee of the Regions’ engagement.
“I am very excited that you are passionate about young people, because that is what the Committee of the Regions is passionate about as well,” she said.
Afor said the focus on poverty reduction was particularly relevant to addressing irregular migration, as young people who perceive that they have no viable opportunities may resort to dangerous migration routes.
“Europe also does not want irregular migrants. So this is a very, very good platform where we can meet together to solve the problem of irregular migration,” she said.
She expressed interest in further studying Nigeria’s approach, particularly OHOPRS, and presenting the minister’s vision to the leadership of the Committee of the Regions.
Afor said the Nigerian experience and the system’s focus on poverty reduction could provide useful perspectives for broader discussions on migration between countries of origin and destination.
In his concluding remarks, Doro described investment in poverty reduction as a strategic investment that could contribute to reducing insecurity, lowering humanitarian needs and freeing resources for human capital development.
“If we invest in poverty reduction, insecurity drops. There will be less need for humanitarian intervention, and we can then use that money for human capital development. Supporting us to be able to reduce poverty is a wise investment,” he said.
