Dr. Funmi Olotu, National Coordinator of the National Social Safety-Nets Coordinating Office (NASSCO), has received four international honours in the United States.
The awards recognised her leadership, public service, and contributions to social protection, inclusion, and human dignity.
The UNESCO Centre for Peace and its partners presented the honours during the high-level week of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.
The recognitions include one from the United States Congress, another from the governor of Maryland, a presidential medal, and the UNESCO Centre for Peace Award, alongside her designation as a peace ambassador.
According to the organisers, the honours recognise Olotu’s leadership in strengthening Nigeria’s social protection architecture, particularly efforts to improve the identification of poor and vulnerable households, strengthen social protection data, and build more responsive systems for vulnerable populations.
Her work at NASSCO has also helped advance an integrated approach to social protection that connects strong institutions and reliable data with resilience, economic inclusion, and improved opportunities for vulnerable households.
Olotu is the second Nigerian to receive this combination of honours from the UNESCO Centre for Peace and its partners.
The honours were presented during the high-level week of the UN General Assembly, placing Nigeria’s social protection experience within the broader global conversation on resilience, inclusion, peace, and sustainable development.
For Olotu, the honours represent not only a personal honour but also an acknowledgement of collective efforts to build stronger institutions and ensure that vulnerable Nigerians are reached with dignity, responsiveness, and opportunity.
‘This recognition is an affirmation of the importance of strengthening social protection systems that understand vulnerability, respond to changing needs, and create pathways to greater resilience and opportunity. Ultimately, the true measure of our work is the difference stronger institutions can make in the lives of the people they are designed to serve,’ Olotu said.