The federal government says it will buffer the severe effects the coronavirus pandemic on vulnerable and poor Nigerians.

The government said it has identified 11 million Nigerians who will benefit from the palliatives to cushion the harsh impacts of COVID-19.

Sadiya Umar Farouk, minister of humanitarian affairs, disaster management and social development, made this known during the briefing by the presidential task force on COVID-19 on Tuesday.

She said the government already has a social register with details of those considered as the vulnerable in society.

This, she said, covers 35 states of the federation with around 2.6 million homes strewn across the country.

Farouk also disclosed that internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the north-east have received two months rations of relief materials.

On Monday, she said the federal government had commenced cash transfer to Nigeria’s poorest households to cushion the effects of the pandemic.