The Bill to move Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) and the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) to first line charge on the federation account has scaled second reading at the Senate.
The bill is tagged, “An Act to Amend the Allocation of Revenue (Federation Account, etc) Act Cap A15 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 and for Other Related Matters, 2020
Leading the debate, at the plenary on Wednesday, the sponsor of the bill, Senator Akpan Bassey (PDP Akwa Ibom North East) recalled that the first reading took place on May 12.
He said, “This bill seeks to amend the Allocation 0f Revenue (Federation Account, Etc.) Act CAP A 15 LFN 2004 to make the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) a first line charge beneficiary of the Federation Account for saving purposes.
“The Bill seeks to amend section 1 of the principal Act to provide for additional funding for the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) by including the NSIA as a first line charge beneficiary of the monthly distributable funds from the Federation Account.”
Akpan said the foundation for the passage of the bill had been made with the proposed amendment to section 162(3) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) to provide for the inclusion of the SWF established under the NSIA (Establishment, Etc).
He added that the senate had also proposed an amendment to sections 30(1) and 47(2) of the NSIA (Establishment, Etc.) Act Cap A 15 Laws of the Federation,2004 to provide additional funds for the SWF through a statutory allocation of funds from the monthly revenue accruing from the Federation Account.
Akpan said the bill would strengthen the operations and withdrawals from the SWF by the Federation to further boost the confidence of the Federating units in the operations of the Fund to the benefit of all.
He stated that the bill proposed that 20 per cent of money due for remittance into the federation account less the statutory 13 per cent of the revenue accruing from natural resources be allocated to the NSIA on monthly basis.
“The proposed amendment as contained in this Bill is therefore to complete the series of amendments in this regard by developing a constitutional and consistent monthly saving culture for the Federation against the rainy day while guarding against constitutional breaches and or conflict of laws.
“Mr (Senate) President and distinguished colleagues, let me strongly emphasize the need for a dedicated saving culture to safeguard the Nigerian economy going forward due to the rapidly changing dynamics and volatility of the global oil market.
“Let us learn our lessons now with the outcome of the COVID-19 pandemic because none of us knows tomorrow.”
The Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, referred the bill to the Senate Committee on Transportation for further legislative duties and to report back within two weeks.
