GEEP National Program Manager Meets UN OCHA, Explores Strategic Collaboration

Newly appointed National Program Manager of the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Program (GEEP), Mr Hamza Ibrahim Baba yesterday, Wednesday June 4, 2025 hosted a strategic meeting with Mr. Trond Jensen, the Representative of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN-OCHA) in Nigeria.

In a statement by the head of communication and pr of the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA), Mr Attari M. Hope, the meeting focused on identifying areas of collaboration, to enhance support for vulnerable communities across the nation.

At the meeting, Mr. Jensen provided an overview of UN-OCHA’s mandate, highlighting its vital role in coordinating international humanitarian responses and advocating for the needs of crisis-affected populations.

In response, Mr. Baba shared insights into GEEP’s core objectives under NSIPA, articulating GEEP’s mission to promote financial inclusion and empower underserved groups, including smallholder farmers, petty traders, artisans, and youth, through targeted microcredit initiatives such as Tradermoni, Marketmoni, and Farmermoni.

Baba also outlined GEEP’s decentralized implementation structure, emphasizing transparency in beneficiary identification, disbursement, and recovery processes.

The GEEP Boss further announced plans to launch the Renewed Hope GEEP 3.0 initiative in July, aimed at expanding the program’s impact.

Key areas for potential collaboration between GEEP and UN-OCHA include:

• Funding Support: Expanding GEEP’s reach through financial assistance.
• Capacity Building: Providing training for program staff and implementing partners to enhance operational effectiveness.
• Community Outreach: Strengthening awareness and mobilization through joint advocacy initiatives.
• Technical Assistance: Leveraging innovation to improve service delivery and operational efficiency.

Both parties expressed optimism about future engagements and committed to ongoing discussions to formalize a framework for collaboration that aligns with national development and humanitarian priorities.

This initial engagement by GEEP – which is a component programme of the NSIPA – according to the statement by Hope, marks a significant step by the new programme manager of GEEP, Mr Hamza Ibrahim Baba towards enhancing synergy between social protection and humanitarian interventions for vulnerable communities across Nigeria.