Efio-Ita Nyok|27 December 2017
Mr Balinwo Ofegobi, the Cross River state coordinator of Youth Employment and Social Support Operations (YESSO), has called on serving public officers and philanthropists to demonstrate interest in what the organisation is doing while assuring the public through the press that YESSO can't be hijacked by politicians NegroidHaven has garnered. He expressed this disposition recently while addressing journalists about the activities of his organisation for the year 2017. According to him, 'I think our political leaders should get interested in what is happening in YESSO'.
Ofegobi, informed the media that, the briefing is to take stock of what the Cross River State Operations Coordinating Unit (SOCU) has done in the year under review, seeking their cooperation to propagate her activities to the targeted very poor and the vulnerable in our society of the importance of YESSO, and to clarify the erroneous assumption that, they’re an employment agency.
His words, 'YESSO, is basically setup by the credit of the World Bank, to see how we can empower our people, through the Social Register (SR) compilation of the poor and vulnerable to assist and facilitate other agencies to intervene in alleviating their plights, using the SR as a ready and authentic document for the purpose as enumerated.
'YESSO, is designed through four components; Coordination, that oversee the activities of all other units and basically compiling the Social Register (Single Register), which is inbuilt into the National Register of the National Safety Net Coordinating Office and oversee by the office of the Vice President.
'The said SR is uniquely compiled and has been tested by the World Bank in about eight other countries. Unique hence, Youths and Community base discussions, generate the Community Base Targeting (CBT), identifying amongst themselves, the very poor and vulnerable members of the community.
Other components; Skills for Job (S4J), they identify young people with basic education and engaged them with teaching of skills, identified in the communities. It’s an attempt to controlling rural-urban migration', he continued.
Ofegobi further explained that there's a public workfare unit that is housed at the state ministry of youths and sports, this unit is responsible for engaging unskilled labour and at the end pay stipends. He also noted that in the state ministry of women and sustainable development, the targeted cash transfer component is harboured. According to him, this unit doles our five thousand naira to the vulnerable in society as captured in their register. He said that YESSO in the state intends to improve its social register to a hundred thousand beyond what it presently has.
Ofegobi's words, 'Public Work-Fare (PWF) Unit, that is domiciled in the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development. Here they get people who don’t have skills but have the strength and are ready to work and engaged in community works and are paid some stipends, thereafter.
'Lastly, the Targeted Cash Transfer (TCT), in the Ministry of Women and Sustainable Development. They’re responsible to pay five thousand naira every month to the very poor and vulnerable persons as captured by the Single Register. And they’re about eighty thousand or more names on the SR and has been approved for use by the World Bank that is funding the operations. Because of its credibility, the Federal Government accept the SR and in turn resorted to using the register to impact her Programme of poverty alleviation.
'Our target for next year, is to be able to increase the names on the SR to about a hundred thousand. Hence, on our third phase of the last Six Local Government Areas of the State, in no particular order, but through the Poverty Map assistance as provided for by the State Bureau of Statistics as guiding aid. He re-emphasis that YESSO, is not an employment agency but an avenue to get people to work, through improving their skills and get them paid stipends', he concluded.
He appealed to political leaders across divide to show concern and be interested in what YESSO does, citing some States that enjoys support funds from the office of the Vice President through the National Social Safety-Net Coordinating Office (NASSCO), rather than credit as currently been in used in Cross River State.
For Ofegobi, Cross River State, can still take advantage of the window of NASSCO resources to improve our Register. Hence, desirous of being included in the Support Fund as well.
When asked if the State Government has complied with the ten percentage counterpart funding, Ofegobi replied thus, 'the State Government has put in a high level of interest in whatever we’re doing at YESSO. However, they’re actually yet to come forward with their own financial contributions, obviously for the fact that, the financial position of the State is lean over the period. They have not meet the obligations and it’s affecting the implementation of other components, and especially the Public Work Fare (PWF) Unit, in the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development. We had planned to bring out over five thousand youths from the Streets, and get them to work. The Banks have provided the ninety percent of the funding’s and no sooner than the State provides hers’ we will take off and you can’t imagine the massive impact on stamping out social vises from the society.” He appealed to the Government, to weather the storm and come forward with their contribution.
YESSO is a Cross River State Government Project and not World Bank, but its however been funded by the World Bank through credit.
YESSO, is involved in skills and job engagement; Thus : Basically for the PWF, they’re getting them to do some work and not like we’re building their skills. But in the process, we’re building their livelihood, encouraging saving schemes (engagement) and getting them paid.
This differs from the S4J, which rather bring out some youths, who have some basic level of education up till JSS3. Here we build their skills and provide some little take ups to support take off.
On the authenticity of the Social Register being without interference and influence, Ofegobi said the structure of endorsing the list right at the community makes it quite difficult for politicians to temper with it. According to him, 'This has been contemplated by the World Bank even before the process started. In the design of the programme targeting method, it’s very clear to be impossible to influence, because we’re getting to the Community, local people and put them in groups to discuss. And whatever list we get at that very moment, is signed on by the community leaders, Chiefs and Youth leaders. It’s difficult for Political influence. YESSO, rather want their influence to get the Federal Government support the process (Register) in all the States and ours. Philanthropists, can as well use the register to support and empower the very poor and vulnerable'.
The Credit, according to Mr. Balinwo Ofegobi, is being guaranteed by the Federal Government but the loans are being taken by the States and included into her Debts Profile, and which will be paid back over time. It’s in a basket, as you deliver, you come and pick (Financial Retirement), whatever is used, depend on how well you work and deliver. It has its rules and regulations. World Bank calls it disbursement.
He equally informed that, all eighteen Local Government Areas have been captured, using the Poverty Map as established by the State Bureau of Statistics as guide. YESSO, will from next year return to all the Local Government Areas for expansion and monitoring, hence, some captured names would have become better off and give way to other very poor and vulnerable and no longer fall into the NET.
The Federal Government has engaged about twenty thousand of our people, in the Cash Transfer Components and paid five thousand naira each, as part of its Social Safety-Net Programme every two months’ intervals and it’s a public register, verifiable through due diligence from the Communities and with time will be put on our website.
YESSO, became effective in 2013, an operation ties to credit and expiring June, 2020. But reactivated in April, 2015 in Cross River after logistics were finally put in place.
Throwing more light, Cross River State, was accepted to key into YESSO, as a result of an existing Project Comfort and Hope Goal of the Liyel Imoke Administration, which made it very easy. Credit is used for compilation of the Social Register, Public Work Fare (PWF) and Skills for Job (S4J) in conjunction with National Directorate of Employment (NDE).
In attendance, were Messers Christopher Anake, Head Monitoring and Evaluation/Management Information System. Francis Otu, Head of Operations, Emmanuel Otei, Head Administration and Mrs. Odu, Information Officer.
