IPA says about 63% Nigerians are faced with multidimensional poverty due to poor policies’ implementation

About 63 percent Nigerians are facing multidimensional poverty worsened by poor implementation of policies and data driven intervention, according to the Innovation for Poverty Action (IPA).

Country Director, IPA Nigeria, Funmi Ayeni, stated this at a Nigeria Evidence Summit organised by the IPA tagged: “Translating Emerging Evidence for impact,” held in Abuja on Wednesday.

She said: “The 2022 multidimensional poverty index shows that 63 percent of persons in Nigeria are multi-dimensionally poor and this isn’t just monetary poverty, it is poverty of education and access to basic infrastructure.

“Hence the purpose of the Nigeria Evidence Summit is to provide a platform where people can come together to have conversations around the thematic areas of social protection, financial inclusion and education.

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“What we are trying to do is to make sure that we have conversations that people can carry forward and will lead to lasting change and impact in Nigeria with regards to tackling the poverty challenge.

“Some of the leading voices in each of the thematic areas speak about the work that they have done and more importantly how to apply the evidence to actual.decision making and policy making in Nigeria.”

On hunger protest gradually rearing its heads in parts of the contry, Ayeni said IPA was working with relevant government agencies to provide data-driven solutions to the challenge.

Chief Global Officer, IPA, Claudia Casarrotto, said leveraging global research and policies adaptability was essential to liberating nations from poverty.

He said IPA shared knowledge to various contexts, noting that: “One of the big part of our work is to share knowledge and share evidence effectively with decision makers across the globe.”

She noted: “Here in Nigeria, we can learnt from what other countries and other context had done to reduce and contribute to solving global poverty problems.

“An interesting part of our work is to bring together decision makers, practitioners and evidence lovers from various countries to learnt together, share experiences and share knowledge.”

Director General, National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, (NAPTIP), Professor Fatima Waziri-Azi, while pointing to benefits of partnering IPA, said her agency was deeply interested in the establishment of evidence-embedded labs by IPA, “a pioneering initiative that holds immense promise in enhancing our data infrastructure and analytical capabilities.”

Waziri-Azi, who was represented by the Director Research and Programme Development, NAPTIP, said: “The Collaborative partnership between NAPTIP and IPA underscores our shared commitment to leveraging evidence to drive meaningful change and foster sustainable development.”