October 30, (THEWILL) – The federal government has approved a supplementary budget totalling N2.1 trillion.
Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu, disclosed this to State House correspondents on Monday, after the Federal Executive Council meeting, presided over by President Bola Tinubu, at the Presidential Villa.
“We submitted a supplementary budget, and the council considered a request for an appropriation of N2 trillion, N176 billion, N791 million, and 286 thousand as a supplementary budget”, he said, adding that the supplementary budget is intended to address pressing issues including allocating N605 billion for defence and security to maintain previous progress.
Bagudu said N300 billion was earmarked for bridge repairs, construction, and rehabilitation, while N200 billion was designated as a seed fund for agriculture.
He added that a further N210 billion was provided for wage awards in ongoing negotiations, covering the period from September to December 2023.
Bagudu said N400 billion was reserved for cash transfer payments, highlighting that the federal government had secured $800 billion from the World Bank for a two-month period, as approved by the President for inclusion in the budget.
The Minister noted that an amount of N100 billion was approved to support the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), for urgent and immediate capital projects, while N18 billion was allocated to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to facilitate the conduct of elections in Bayelsa and Imo states.
Bagudu also said an additional N5.5 billion was designated for funding the launch of student loans, while N800 billion was allocated for the establishment of a new ministry.
Bagudu disclosed that the council granted approval to increase the domestic borrowing ceiling.
He emphasised that they have submitted the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), to the National Assembly and the government is maintaining the January to December budget cycle.
While the six-month wage award to labour remains unchanged, he said any necessary adjustments will be included in the supplementary budget for the current year.
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