Inside Ondo’s ₦20k senior security scheme: promise, potential, and past pitfalls

• Ondo pays at least 5,400 elderly residents ₦20,000 monthly across 18 LGAs.

• Beneficiaries are aged 70 and above and have no formal retirement pension.

• The scheme comes amid wider concerns over targeting, transparency and sustainability of Nigerian cash transfers.

At least 5,400 elderly residents across Ondo State are receiving a monthly stipend of ₦20,000 under a social welfare programme.

The programme is being implemented across Ondo State's 18 local government areas: Akoko North-East, Akoko North-West, Akoko South-East, Akoko South-West, Akure North, Akure South, Ese-Odo, Idanre, Ifedore, Ilaje, Ile-Oluji/Okeigbo, Irele, Odigbo, Okitipupa, Ondo East, Ondo West, Ose and Owo.

The programme targets vulnerable residents aged 70 and above who do not receive formal retirement pensions.

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The Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Alhaji Amidu Takuro, disclosed the figures during a government event on pension and gratuity payments in October 2025.

According to Takuro, a minimum of 300 elderly people in each of the state’s 18 local government areas were receiving the monthly payment, bringing the minimum number of beneficiaries to 5,400.

The commissioner said the initiative formed part of broader efforts by the administration of Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa to use local government resources to provide direct support to vulnerable residents.

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The government has also indicated that the number of beneficiaries could be increased as the programme develops.

The stipend is separate from payments to retired government workers. In October 2025, the Aiyedatiwa administration also commenced the payment of ₦1.6 billion in outstanding gratuities to retired local government workers and primary school teachers.

Takuro said the government had also directed that a portion of available funds be saved quarterly to support the payment of pensioners’ gratuities. 

The elderly stipend is part of a wider local-government welfare package that includes support for young people and women, as well as agricultural inputs such as fertiliser and palm and cocoa seedlings.

The programme comes at a time when the cost of food, healthcare and other basic needs continues to put pressure on older Nigerians, particularly those who spent their working years in the informal sector and have no contributory pension.

Nigeria already has a federal institution specifically mandated to address the needs of this group. 

The National Senior Citizens Centre (NSCC) was established under the National Senior Citizens Centre Act 2017 and is responsible for coordinating programmes aimed at improving the welfare, health, income security and social inclusion of older people. 

The centre defines older persons in Nigeria as people aged 60 and above.

Other states have experimented with similar approaches.

In Ekiti State, former governor Kayode Fayemi introduced the Owo Arugbo social security scheme in 2012, under which indigent elderly residents received monthly stipends. 

The programme was discontinued by Ayo Fayose’s administration in 2014 but was reintroduced when Fayemi returned to office in 2018.

Contemporary reports put the original monthly payment at ₦5,000.

Abia State has taken a different approach by putting senior citizens' welfare into law. 

Governor Alex Otti signed the Senior Citizens Welfare Bill into law, with Law No. 4 of 2025 establishing the Abia State Senior Citizens Centre and providing for welfare and healthcare support for residents aged 60 and above.

But cash-transfer programmes in Nigeria have also faced questions over targeting, payment delays and transparency.

The civil society organisation Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ) has monitored federal cash-transfer programmes across several states and has repeatedly called attention to weaknesses in implementation.

During a 2022 monitoring exercise, the organisation reported that cash payments in communities created security risks and said beneficiaries with bank accounts could instead be considered for easier electronic transfers. 

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There have also been more recent complaints about beneficiary selection. 

In November 2025, residents of the Ero community in the Ifedore Local Government Area of Ondo State alleged irregularities in the Federal Government's conditional cash-transfer programme, including claims that deceased people appeared on beneficiary lists while some living residents were excluded.

These concerns are important for Ondo's programme because the value of a cash transfer depends not only on the amount being paid but also on whether the right people receive it consistently.

A ₦20,000 monthly payment can provide immediate relief to an elderly person struggling to buy food or meet other basic expenses. But fixed cash payments can also lose purchasing power as prices rise.

The long-term test for Ondo will therefore be whether the programme can maintain accurate beneficiary records, prevent political interference, ensure payments reach beneficiaries in full and on time, and remain funded beyond the tenure of the administration that introduced or expanded it.