Sustainable and Innovative Social Protection Programmes in Nigeria

Deadline: 20-Jun-25

The European Commission (EC) is accepting proposals to support Sustainable and Innovative Social Protection Programmes in Nigeria.

Lots

• Under Lot 1: The action will contribute to our Social Protection programme, helping it strengthens, expand, and digitalise the National Social Register (NSR) as an effective management information system with improved mechanisms, to make it a shock responsive system and a tool for policy planning towards poverty reduction and interoperable with other existing related databases.
• Under Lot 1, the goal is to advocate, campaign, build knowledge, create awareness and promote the activities linked to social protection system in specific states and at national level. This action will be implemented at the national level and selected states across the country in collaboration with the existing EU funded project on social protection system strengthening.
• Under Lot 2: The action intends to support government to strengthen the social protection systems and contribute to reducing poverty and building resilience among the poor and vulnerable households, with a particular focus on women and girls in communities affected by climate change. This entails, primarily, direct support to selected communities’ poor and vulnerable beneficiaries, as well as system strengthening and capacity building contributing as may be necessary to the design and implementation of the state Safety Net strategy at state level. The action may include the creation of state-level safety-net strategy if none exists

Objectives

• The specific objective(s) of this call for proposals is/are:
  • Specific Objective under Lot 1: The action is expected to support and complement existing EU funded social protection project to advocate, sensitize the citizens and stakeholders on the effective coordination and utilization of the National Social Register in national planning and poverty reduction programmes.
  • Specific Objective under Lot 2: To implement a comprehensive social safety net initiative that tests and enhances “social protection in practice,” targeting beneficiaries and rights holders in selected Nigerian communities, with a particular focus on Kebbi State. This initiative aims to sustainably reduce poverty by prioritizing vulnerable households, especially women and girls in climate change-affected areas, as well as at-risk populations near protected game reserves and national parks. By providing sustainable livelihoods and durable pathways out of poverty, the programme seeks to create lasting positive impacts on these communities, effectively addressing both social and environmental challenges while promoting long-term resilience and economic stability for the most vulnerable segments of the population.

Priorities

• The priorities of this call for proposals are:
  • Under Lot 1: 
    • Contribute to enhance the capacity of government staff at the national and state levels to use the NSR to its full advantage
    • Promote the NSR’s functionality as a national planning tool for policymakers and government at all levels.
    • Engage with stakeholders and the community actors to make them understand the benefits of a fully interoperable social register in the reduction of poverty and supporting citizens in times of shocks and emergencies.
    • Support the NSR’s functionality as a national planning tool for policymakers and government at all levels through community sensitization and feedback mechanism around the social register.
    • Advocacy, sensitization and campaign programs that will galvanise actions and support for legislative framework for social protection at the state and national level.
    • Develop and enhance community sensitization and feedback mechanism around the social register and social protection in general
    • In collaboration with existing EU funded project, promote actions that support robust and shock responsive social protection system that integrate variables across the relevant sectors with particular attention to vulnerable and poor household, girls, women and people with disability.
    • Carry out assessment and research as it relates to the impact of poverty and government intervention for advocacy and to inform policy decision.
    • Build a network of community and civil society actors that will continually engage with the duty bearers in the design of robust social protection programmes that addresses the needs of the community
  • Under Lot 2: 
    • Implement a comprehensive social safety net initiative in selected communities, affected by climate change in the state of Kebbi.
    • Target social register beneficiaries and rights holders, as well as IDPs if any, with particular emphasis on most vulnerable households.
    • Prioritize support for women and girls in climate change-affected areas.
    • Address the needs of at-risk populations near protected game reserves and national parks.
    • Provide sustainable livelihoods and durable pathways out of poverty for targeted beneficiaries.
    • Test and enhance “social protection in practice” through the implementation of this initiative.
    • Create lasting positive impacts on targeted communities by addressing both social and environmental challenges.
    • Promote long-term resilience and economic stability for the most vulnerable segments of the population.
    • Integrate climate-smart practices into livelihood activities to reduce vulnerability to environmental shocks, for instance by providing skills for green jobs.
    • Strengthen the overall social protection system by leveraging existing national frameworks and initiatives.
    • Other relevant outputs could be added during the inception phase.

Sectors or Themes

• Under Lot 1.
  • Poverty Reduction
  • Social protection
  • Education
  • Health
  • Youth, Women and Girls
  • Social Insurance and Labour
  • ICT/database management
• Under Lot 2.
  • Social protection
  • Poverty reduction
  • Education and green skill acquisition
  • Safety-net and Livelihoods,
  • Food and nutrition security,
  • Income generation and financial inclusion

Funding Information

• The overall indicative amount made available under this call for proposals is EUR 12.5 million.
• Indicative allocation of funds by lot/geographical distribution:
  • Lot 1 – has a maximum budget of €2.5 million
  • Lot 2 –  has a maximum budget of € 10 million.
• Size of grants
  • Any grant requested under this call for proposals must not exceed the below maximum amount:
    • minimum amount: EUR 2.5 million for Lot 1
    • maximum amount: EUR 10 million for Lot 2

Duration

• The initial planned duration of an action may not be lower than 30 months nor exceed 36 months.

Eligibility Criteria

• In order to be eligible for a grant, the lead applicant must:
  • be a legal person (an entity with legal personality) and
  • be non-profit-making and
  • be a specific type of organisation such as: non-governmental organisation, public sector operator, local authority, international (inter-governmental) organisation
  • be effectively established in a Member State of the European Union or Nigeria. Due to the legal status of international organisations, the obligation of effective establishment in the referred countries does not apply to international organisations, where the latter are eligible, and
  • be directly responsible for the preparation and management of the action with the co-applicant(s) and affiliated entity(ies), not acting as an intermediary, and
  • have at least 4 years’ experience of rural community programming including amongst others social safety net, food security, financial inclusion and empowerment etc.

For more information, visit EC.