The Auditor-General for the Federation has raised concerns over N33.75 billion transferred to more than 3.29 million households in 2023, saying there was not enough evidence to confirm that genuine beneficiaries received the funds.
The finding was contained in the 2024 Annual Report on Non-Compliance and Internal Control Weaknesses in Ministries, Departments and Agencies. The report reviewed transactions of the National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO), Abuja, for 2023 and was sent to the National Assembly on July 17, 2026.
Auditors said N33.751 billion was electronically transferred to 3,295,207 households and beneficiaries across 35 states. However, incomplete payment vouchers and missing records made it impossible to verify the recipients against the National Social Register and National Beneficiary Register.
The NCTO also failed to provide a Remita statement linking recipients to the registers.
“This hindered the authentication of the payments and made it difficult to ascertain whether the beneficiaries who received the funds were genuine,” the auditors said.
The report added that attempts to obtain the records were blocked by NCTO accounts staff.
“All efforts to obtain access to the REMITA statement were obstructed and denied by NCTO accounts staff, thereby frustrating the audit process,” the report stated.
Auditors warned of possible payments to fictitious or ineligible persons and loss of public funds.
They recommended that the programme manager account for the N33.75 billion before the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committees. If the funds cannot be accounted for, they should be recovered and returned to the treasury.
The NCTO was also ordered to provide proof that beneficiaries received the money, with sanctions recommended for failure to produce the required documents.
