Wale Edun, the minister of Finance, has stated that Nigeria’s revenue recorded increase in the 2024 fiscal year so far is being channelled into social intervention programmes.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu recently announced that the federal government’s revenue for the first half of 2024 (January to June) stood at over N9.1 trillion—more than double the N4.06 trillion generated in the same period in 2023.
Speaking at a panel session titled ‘Fiscal Reforms for a More Secure Future’ during the 30th Nigeria Economic Summit in Abuja on Tuesday, Edun said the increased revenue is primarily being used to finance social programmes aimed at mitigating the impact of essential but challenging reforms that have affected the cost of living.
According to him, the interventions include direct cash transfers targeting 20 million households, with 4 million households already reached.
Edun also highlighted other initiatives, such as the student loan scheme and consumer credit made available to workers to enable them to purchase household goods or convert their vehicles to cheaper, cleaner Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) fuel.
In the agricultural sector, the government is providing grants and loans worth up to N75 billion to support one million small and micro enterprises.
For larger companies, Edun said an additional N75 billion is being disbursed in tranches of N1 billion per company at a 9 percent annual interest rate, helping them manage the cost of production and operations, particularly in light of the recent foreign exchange adjustments impacting their profit margins.
“This is how President Tinubu and his government are spending the increased revenue, which has been driven by improved oil production and macroeconomic reforms that are expected to save the country 5 percent of GDP,” Edun explained.
“There is a broad array of social investment initiatives where these funds are being directed.”
Also speaking at the summit, Ndiamé Diop, the World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, acknowledged the country’s significant revenue increase, noting that its revenue-to-GDP ratio is expected to improve.
He pointed out that in 2022, Nigeria spent 12.9 percent of its GDP, but revenue covered only 7.6 percent, leaving the country with a substantial fiscal deficit funded mainly through debt. “This trajectory could have led to a crisis,” Diop warned.
The ongoing reforms, he suggested, are essential to stabilising Nigeria’s fiscal position and ensuring sustainable economic growth.
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