President Muhammadu Buhari has solicited for the immediate approval of the $29.960 billion external borrowing (rolling) plan for the 2016-2018, from the National Assembly.
The borrowing plan, would enable Federal Government to implement various sectoral developmental projects in infrastructure, agriculture, health, education, water supply, growth and employment generation, poverty reduction through social safety net programmes and governance and financial management reforms, among others.
In the bid to ensure effective appropriation and capturing of the external borrowing inflow into the country from various donor agencies, the House Committee on Aids, Loans and Debt Management chaired by Adeyinka Ajayi (APC-Osun) has flagged off the review of the foreign aids inflow.
The Committee during its working visit to Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) stressed the need to ascertain the status of major projects implemented so far through the Agency.
During an overview of the presentation, Ajayi underscored the need for the Parliament to be part of all the process before the commencement of any projects, noting that funding of a lot of the ongoing projects through loans should be known to the Committee which critical oversight function is on Foreign lands, Aids and Debt Management.
While stressing the need for clarifications of various terms and conditions reached between Nigeria and Japanese agencies, Ajayi urged JICA to provide detailed of all the loans, grants, aids including counterpart fundings and loan components of all the agreements
Buhari had in the 3-page letter dated 20th October, 2016 and addressed separately to the Senate President Bukola Saraki and Speaker Yakubu Dogara, the sum of $11.274 billion is for special National infrastructure projects while the sum of $10.686 billion is for Euro bonds of $4.5 billion and Federal Government Budget Support of $3.5 billion.
The President who called for expedite consideration and approval of the proposal by the two chambers, explained that the projects and programmes in the borrowing plan were “selected based on positive technical Economic evaluations as well as the contribution they would make to socio-economic development of the country including employment generation and poverty reduction and protection of the most vulnerable and very poor segment of the Nigerian society.
“Considering the huge infrastructure deficit currently being experienced in the county and enormous financial resources required to fill the gap in the face of the dwindling resources and the inability of our national budgetray provisions to bridge the infrastructure deficit,it has become necessary to resort to prudent external borrowing to bridge the financing gap which will largely be applied to let infrastructure projects namely: power, railway, and road projects among others.”
Buhari also disclosed that the World Bank has approved $125 million loan for the procurement of vaccines and other ancillary facilities urgently required to effectively embark on the campaign to stop and eventually eliminate the polio outbreak especially in the North East region, and other states of the Federation.
Other projects include: $75 million for community and social development project, $125 million for Nigeria States Health Programme Investment Project; $100 million for State Education Programme Investment Project; $100 million for Nigeria Youth Employment and Social Support Project and $50 million for FADAMA III Project respectively.
While assuring the Legislature of his administration’s resolve to ensure prudent utilisation of the funds, Buhari argued that the proposed external borrowing plan include some emergency projects that require “immediate and urgent approval to avert long term damage.”
The lamented that the recent outbreak of polio in the North East is a matter of concern, especially following the recent delisting of Nigeria from the list of polio endemic countries.
He also expressed optimism that the approval of the funding proposal will go a long way to complement ongoing efforts toward restoration of peace and normalcy I to the North East region.