Business

2023: FG budgets N3.36trn for six-month subsidy payment

The Federal Government has proposed to spend N3.36 trillion on fuel subsidy payment in 2023.

Petrol subsidy would remain up to mid-2023 sequel to the 18-month extension announced early in 2021.

The government is proposing to spend N19.76 trillion in 2023.

The 2023 budget, however, had a proposed deficit of N11.3 trillion.

Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, made the declaration in Abuja on Monday while addressing a sitting of the House of Representatives Committee on Finance on the 2023-2025 Medium Term Expenditure Framework.

Ahmed said government was projecting revenue of N8.46 trillion for 2023; N1.9 trillion of which would come from oil-related sources while the balance would come from non-oil sources.

She said the budget would be premised on $70 per barrel of crude oil and an exchange rate of N435.57 to the dollar.

The minister said oil production for 2023 was pegged at 1.69 million barrel per day; a real GDP growth rate of 3.7 per cent and inflation rate of 17.16 per cent for the year.

Elon Musk: World needs more babies, oil

The minister also told the session that there would be tighter enforcement of performance management framework for Government-owned Enterprises that would significantly increase operating surplus/dividend remittances in 2023.

Ahmed assured that there were no projections that Nigeria would default in her debt services in the nearest future.

She assured also that while the amount currently used in debt servicing had overshot appropriation in the 2022 budget, systems had been put in place to manage the situation.

“We planned that 60 per cent of revenue would be spent on debt servicing, but in some months, the ratio went up to 90 per cent.

“We have been able to, consistently without fail, serviced our debt and we do not have any projections even in the near future that we will fail.

“We actually follow the Medium Term Debt Management Strategy very strictly; the debts are not taken haphazardly and they are planned.

“They are appropriated and then we borrow against appropriation,” she stressed.

Atiku donates N50m to Kano flood victims

The minister acknowledged, however, that government was under pressure to manage debt servicing following the drop in revenue generation.

She called on the National Assembly and on other stakeholders to join government to increase revenue performance.

Earlier, Chairman of the Committee, Rep. James Faleke (APC-Lagos State) noted that Nigeria was short of revenue, and that so many things suffered when revenue was short.

The Debt Management Office had earlier stated that Nigeria’s debt profile as at December 2021 stood at N39.55 trillion.

The Star

Editor

Recent Posts

Court sends oil magnate to prison for diverting $26m refinery fund

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has remanded the Founder and Chairman of Platform…

7 mins ago

Minister’s aide to MURIC: Wike not running FCTA based on religion

Lere Olayinka, Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media to the Federal Capital…

49 mins ago

NIWA warns Nigerians: Avoid rickety boats,  drunk operators

...Oyebamiji advocates Passage Of Coast Guards Bill The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has again…

2 hours ago

Ibadan stampede: Court sends Ooni’s ex-wife, principal, journalist to prison

A Chief Magistrates’ Court sitting in the Iyaganku area of Ibadan, the Oyo State capital,…

5 hours ago

Christmas: Make sacrifices for Nigeria’s devt, Adelabu urges Christians

Minister of Power Adebayo Adelabu has urged Christians and other Nigerians to emulate the selfless…

5 hours ago

Ex-U.S. President Bill Clinton hospitalised

Former United States President Bill Clinton is in a Washington hospital for testing and observation…

8 hours ago

This website uses cookies.