The Federal Government has outlined the steps through which selected poor and vulnerable households can access its N50,000 cash grant under the National Emergency Relief and Stabilisation Intervention (NERSI).

The intervention, being implemented by the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, is aimed at providing financial relief to low-income households struggling with the rising cost of living.

Under the programme, selected beneficiaries will receive N50,000 each through mobile wallets operated by five designated payment service providers: ALAT, MoMo, NairaGram, OPay and Moniepoint.

According to the programme guidelines, the disbursement process involves four major stages, beginning with an SMS notification sent to individuals whose names have been shortlisted for the intervention.

Upon receiving the notification, beneficiaries are required to reply YES to confirm their willingness to participate in the programme.

The government explained that the confirmation is mandatory, stressing that no payment would be processed without the recipient’s consent.

Following confirmation, a mobile wallet will be created for each beneficiary and linked to their registered phone number and National Identification Number (NIN).

The N50,000 grant will subsequently be credited to the wallet, allowing recipients to withdraw the money through Point of Sale (POS) agents or banks, or spend it directly through their mobile wallet.

How to withdraw the N50,000 grant

The government said beneficiaries would receive additional instructions from their respective payment providers after the funds had been credited.

Recipients can also access their money using the designated Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) codes provided by the payment platforms.

The withdrawal codes are:

• ALAT (Wema Bank): Dial *945*23#.
• MoMo PSB: Dial *671*0#.
• NairaGram: Dial *726*00#.
• OPay: Dial *955*20# or use the OPay mobile application.
• Moniepoint: Dial *5573*27# or use its mobile application.

How beneficiaries are selected

The Federal Government said beneficiaries are identified through verified national identity records and the National Social Register, which contains information on poor and vulnerable households across the country.

It clarified that the programme does not provide an open application process through which individuals can independently register for the grant.

Consequently, Nigerians seeking to benefit from the intervention cannot secure a place on the beneficiary list by submitting applications or paying individuals to facilitate their selection.

The government also explained that the initial phase of the disbursement would not accommodate every household that meets the eligibility requirements, indicating that the intervention would be implemented in phases.

FG warns Nigerians against fraud

Meanwhile, the government has cautioned Nigerians against fraudsters attempting to exploit the cash transfer programme to defraud unsuspecting members of the public.

It emphasised that the N50,000 payment is a grant, not a loan, and beneficiaries are not required to pay any registration, processing or withdrawal fees to receive their money.

According to the guidelines, legitimate notifications will only come through the designated payment providers ALAT, MoMo, NairaGram, OPay and Moniepoint.

The messages will require recipients to reply YES to confirm their participation or follow the official instructions provided by their payment service provider.

The government stressed that genuine notifications would never request beneficiaries’ Personal Identification Numbers (PINs), One-Time Passwords (OTPs) or passwords. Recipients would also not be asked to make payments or click suspicious links to access the grant.

Beneficiaries have therefore been advised to keep their banking details and security information confidential, including when dealing with payment agents or individuals claiming to represent the programme.

The government further urged Nigerians to disregard messages from unauthorised sources and contact the programme’s official helpline whenever they have doubts about the authenticity of a notification.

What Nigerians should know about the NERSI grant

The National Emergency Relief and Stabilisation Intervention is a Federal Government initiative designed to provide financial assistance to households affected by increasing living costs.

Each selected household will receive a one-off payment of N50,000, with the government assuring that the full amount will be credited without deductions.

Unlike a loan or other repayable financial assistance, the grant does not require beneficiaries to make repayments.

The government also explained that the phone numbers used to contact beneficiaries were obtained from information contained in the National Social Register and verified national identity records.

These details are shared with the designated payment providers to facilitate the disbursement process, while beneficiaries’ personal information is expected to be used specifically for the implementation of the intervention.