BEYOND SOCIAL PROTECTION: ASSESSING THE ACCESSIBILITY AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPACT OF CONDITIONAL CASH TRANSFERS ON WIDOWS IN GWAGWALADA AREA COUNCIL, NIGERIA

Widows constitute one of the most economically vulnerable yet least visible groups within Nigeria’s social protection architecture. This study assessed the impact of the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) component of the National Social Investment Programme on widows in Gwagwalada Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria. Three dimensions of programme performance were examined: accessibility, socio-economic impact and contribution to access to basic social services. A quantitative cross-sectional survey design was adopted. Drawing on a target population of 2,000 widows, a sample of 400 was determined using the Taro Yamane formula, and 183 valid questionnaires were retrieved and analysed using descriptive statistics, a one-sample proportion test and one-sample t-tests. The findings show that awareness of the programme was universal (100%) while enrolment stood at 77%, and the proportion test confirmed that enrolment was significantly greater than chance, z = 7.32, p < .001. The t-tests showed that the programme produced significant gains, with more than 90% of beneficiaries reporting higher income, t(140) = 24.37, p < .001, d = 2.05, and a significant contribution to educational access, t(113) = 6.76, p < .001, d = 0.63, although gains in healthcare, water and sanitation were uneven. Stipends were spent overwhelmingly on subsistence rather than productive investment, and no beneficiary reported receiving financial literacy training. The study concludes that the CCT functions effectively as a protective safety net but falls short of transformative empowerment. It recommends simplified enrolment, needs-based stipends and the integration of financial literacy and livelihood services into the programme design