The Nation Newspaper

Tag: World Bank loan

  • Senate rejects Kaduna’s $350m World Bank loan

    THE Senate yesterday rejected the approval of $350 million World Bank loan request by Kaduna State.

    The rejection of the loan request followed the presentation and consideration of the recommendations of the report of the Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, which asked the Senate to turn down the request.

    Chairman of the committee, Senator Shehu Sani (Kaduna Central), who presented the report, said: “The committee recommends that the Senate do reject the request of USD350 million for Kaduna State as contained in the 2015-2018 External Borrowing (Rolling) Plan of Mr. President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.”

    Apart from Sani, who heavily criticised the loan request, two other senators from Kaduan State, Suleiman Hunkuyi (Kaduan North) and Danjuma La’ah (Kaduna South) stoutly opposed the loan.

    The committee, in its conclusion, noted that “with the high total debt stock of Kaduna State at the moment, the new borrowing sought, will make the debt service to revenue ratio high, thereby worsening the state government’s ability to meet its other basic obligations to the people and further erode the state’s economic viability.”

    The committee, in its finding, noted that based on the submissions and interactions with invited government officials, the committee observed as follows:

    “That the Development Policy Operation DPO (Budget Support) of USD 350 million for Kaduna State was approved by World Bank in 2016 and captured in 2016 – 2018 borrowing plan as approved by the National Assembly.

    “That the credit facility has an attractive low financing data of 1.25% interest; moratorium of 5 years and a 25 year maturity tenor.

    “That the facility is already captured in the 2016-2018 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF).

    “That according to the latest Debt Management Office figures, Kaduna State has a total debt stock of USD232.1 million.

    “That approving the current loan request of USD350 million for Kaduna State will bring its total debt stock to USD582.1 million.

    “That if this loan request is approved, the new total debt stock of USD582.1 million for Kaduna State will be unsustainable and necessarily attract huge financial burden on the meager federal allocation to the state.

    “With the new borrowing, the Debt Service to Revenue Ratio of Kaduna State will further be increased and thus impact negatively on the ability of the state to meet other basic needs of its people.

    “The new debt stock will likely, further erode the economic viability of the state.”

    The committee, therefore, recommended that “the Senate do reject the request of USD350 million for Kaduna State as contained in the 2015 2018 External Borrowing (Rolling) Plan of Mr. President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces”.

    The Senate warned that any attempt by government officials to circumvent the rejection of the loan request and the process will be contrary to law.

    Hunkuyi, in his submission, said only two people, Commissioner for Women Affairs, whose ministry has nothing to do with the loan and an aide of the Kaduna State governor, sat and approved the loan.

    The lawmaker noted that as a representative of the people, he has the mandate of his constituents to oppose the loan.

    He wondered why $170 million out of the $350 was slated to be drawn within one year.

    La’ah said his constituents did not give him the authority to support the approval of the loan.

    He said: “They are busy sacking and retiring people in the state; what is the loan for? I am not in support of the loan. It should not be granted.”

    Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, who presided put the matter to vote two times.

    What followed was a deafening “nay” to each of the question.

     

  • Edo to fund 2017 budget deficit with World Bank loan

    Edo to fund 2017 budget deficit with World Bank loan

    •Obaseki presents N150b Appropriation Bill

    The Edo State government will fund next year’s N25 billion budget deficit from the third tranche of a World Bank support facility.
    The facility was first obtained during former Governor Adams Oshiomhole’s administration.
    Governor Godwin Obaseki spoke yesterday in Benin, the state capital, while presenting the N150,011,831,079 billion 2017 budget estimate to the House of Assembly.
    Next year’s budget estimate is 29 per cent higher than last year’s.
    The Budget of Consolidation and Prosperity, Obaseki said, was wrapped around six key policy areas.
    These, the governor said, include Economic Revolution, Infrastructural Expansion, Institutional Reform, Social Welfare Enhancement, Culture and Tourism as well as Environmental Sustainability.
    The budget estimate comprises N74,900,297,917 Recurrent Expenditure and N75,111,533,162 Capital Expenditure.
    A breakdown showed that Infrastructure took the lion’s share of N22,299,889,188, while N10,449,113,413 was allocated to Education. Economic Growth and Employment Enablers got N14,721,608,143.
    Administration was allocated N4,736,808,082, Law and Justice got N1,840,615,605, Social Sector N24,152,612,144 and Economic sector N44,521,497,331.
    Obaseki said the revenue estimate for next year was based on a $42.0 bench mark for crude oil and expectations of improved performance of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).
    The governor noted that the budget, if implemented on the six key pillars with uncommon focus, will help the state to build a new society, create jobs, opportunities, wealth and usher in an era of prosperity.
    He said the policy direction of the budget was informed by his interactions with Edo residents during his campaigns.
    Obaseki said his administration would explore and prepare for Zero Budgeting as well as take a look at the Treasury Single Account (TSA) policy to better manage the public finance.
    He said: “Edo State government’s priorities in 2017 will include a continuation of infrastructural projects from 2016. It would include institutional reforms to better prepare the civil service for optimal service delivery.
    “…We will revamp the working environment of public officers, emphasise training and seek to improve the incentive structure. Specifically, the secretariat buildings will be renovated and government offices will be relocated on the secretariat axis.
    “We would also build a new central administrative building in Government House. We are convinced a conducive work environment would help to revolutionise service delivery to the people and increase returns due to government.
    “To achieve our promise of a minimum of 200,000 jobs within four years, our job creation strategy, through a series of outlined programmes, includes partnering private identified private sector investors to recruit and offer training to out-growers and anchor farmers in specific crops where we have secured off-takers.
    “In this budget, we are paying greater attention to Law, Order and Security, through more allocation to the Judiciary and implementing an Edo State security plan, which will involve community policing.
    “For us to grow our state economy, we shall engage our people more and explore ways to assist in making them more productive, for herein lies our prosperity. We shall, therefore, take steps to improve the ease of doing business in Edo State but drastically reduce the bottlenecks experienced by business people.”

  • Uroghide does not deserve senate seat – Shuaibu

    Philip Shuaibu, the running mate to the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo state, Godwin Obaseki says the allegation by the Director General of the PDP governorship candidate, Matthew Uroghide that Governor Adams Oshiomhole was using the 75 dollars World Bank loan for Obaseki’s campaign shows he was mistakenly voted in as a senator.

    According to him, “everybody knows how a World Bank loan is monitored to the point projects are completed, so I wonder where Uroghide is getting his information from. But we are not surprised because out of jealousy Uroghide opposed the approval of the 75million dollars World Bank loan which will benefit his constituency. With that approval of by National Assembly which was done against his wish, the Queen Ede erosion control has been made possible today.

    “The work of a senator is to represent his senatorial district and bringing projects that will impact on the lives of his people. If Uroghide does not want the development of his people and he does not want erosion control at Queen Ede, such a person does not deserve to be a Senator particularly in Edo South. Because he does not want development in his area he does not know the extent of work that is taking place in Queen Ede.

    “That shows that himself and his fake Pastor candidate, does not see development they only see destruction. And as a senator he should mention one bill that he has moved on the floor of the house. He is the first senator from Edo South that have been shouted down by his colleagues in the senate twice that he wanted to speak, it means he does not have confidence on himself.

    “I am challenging him to it, it took me just few minutes to move a motion at the floor of the House calling for attention on the dilapidated Benin-Auchi road but he that is from Benin he never did anything to help. He is only in the senate for fashion and business. He is showing his ignorant in public that the money was being diverted because that is what PDP would have done if they have the opportunity. Edo South people still have the opportunity to recall him because he is going to waste the next three years in that senate,” he stated.

  • Senate okays $200m World Bank loan for Lagos

    Senate okays $200m World Bank loan for Lagos

    The Senate yesterday approved $200 million World Bank loan for the Lagos State government.

    This followed the submission and consideration of the report of the Ad Hoc Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, headed by Senator Kabiru Gaya, and seven others.

    President Muhammadu Buhari wrote the Senate on September 29, requesting a special approval of Lagos State Development Policy Operation III under the Federal Government External Borrowing Plan (2015-2017) for the third tranche of $200 million of the DPO from the World Bank.

    The World Bank Development Policy Operation (DPO) is a budget support facility used basically to finance deficit in annual budgets of governments to enhance the capacity of beneficiary government to execute key projects.

    The Lagos State DPO (budget support) for $600 million was approved by the World Bank in 2010 to be disbursed in three tranches of $200 million each.

    The committee said the first tranche was approved by the National Assembly in the 2010 Borrowing Plan while the projects were implemented in 2011.

    The second tranche was approved by the National Assembly in 2012-2014 Borrowing Plan while the third tranche facility is captured in the 2015-2017 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF).

    The committee said the state justified the borrowing and has acceptable debt sustainability level and was eligible to borrow.

    It said the loan would be used to finance the light rail project, education, roads and bridges, water and health sector development, among others.

    It said the projects to be funded from the facility would enhance great economic growth, employment generation and increased the revenue generation capacity of the state.

    The committee added that the credit facility would enhance gains made in key sectors from the first and second tranches, particularly in the Ultra-Modern Burns Centre, Cardiac and Renal Centre at Gbagada General Hospital.

    The 27km light rail on the Badagry Expressway corridor to Marina is included as part of projects to be funded from the loan and completion of the 70 million gallon per day Adiyan water facility.

     

  • Edo yet to receive $75m World Bank loan –Oshiomhole

    • Gov sets agenda for successor

    Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State on Friday said the state was yet to receive the $75million World Bank loan recently approved for the state.

    Oshiomhole disclosed this in Benin during a Colloquium organised by the state government to round off activities marking its 7th year in office.

    The governor said the clarification became necessary to instil confidence in the people that the state government’s ability to pay salaries up to date was not based on the loan, but on prudent management of resources.

    He contended that it was not the business of government to do business.

    “It is rather to create the enabling environment for citizens to make wealth so that government could collect taxes and develop the society.’’

    He noted that government and governance were not value-free, adding that the way forward was to focus on continued development of every sector of the economy.

    He also said government would strategise to ensure that workers earned their pay and give government value for pay.

    Osakue stressed that every sector of government should be included in a discussion that would ensure issues and challenges in the state were discussed with a view to finding a middle ground.

    Mr Femi Falana (SAN), who moderated the discussion, said the forum was to x-ray the present administration as well as use the opportunity to cross fertilise ideas.

    Meanwhile, with less than 365 days to the expiration of his tenure as governor of the state, Oshiomhole yesterday set out issues to be tackled by his successor.

    Among the known aspirants jostling to replace Oshiomhole are the chairman of the state Economic Team, Godwin Obaseki; the Commissioner for Works, Osarodion Ogie; Deputy Governor Pius Odubu, Charles Airhiavbere; Chris Ogiemwonyi and Chris Iyare amongst others.

    Speaking at the colloquium,  Oshiomhole said his successor, who he said is capable of implementing the set out agenda, was sitting in the hall.

    Oshiomhole stated that more roads need to be built, more teachers need to be employed and the lives of the citizenry to be improved upon.

     

  • We took $75m loan because PDP looted treasury – Oshiomhole

    We took $75m loan because PDP looted treasury – Oshiomhole

    Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, said the state was forced to take a World Bank Development loan because the Peoples Democratic Party-led Federal Government in 16 years looted the nation’s treasury and pauperized the states.

    He, however, said it was a good thing that President Muhammadu Buhari came at the right time to stop the liquidation of the country.

    The World Bank had approved a $225 million loan for Edo State Government in 2012, to be implemented in three tranches of $75 million per annum.

    The first tranche of the loan was approved by the National Assembly in the 2012-2014 Federal Government External Rolling Borrowing Plan, while the second tranche was approved by the National Assembly last week.

    Speaking with reporters at the Government House on Monday, Oshiomhole said, “If the PDP did not steal the money, we would not need to borrow. What we lost from the NLNG under the PDP led Federal Government was about $11.6 billion. Edo State’s share of that money was more than N30 billion. If you realise that from every one billion dollars, we get more than N2.7 billion. So if PDP did not steal and bleed the economy dry, our legitimate revenue stolen by the past PDP government and its men is more than that.

    “PDP is simply not in a position to blame the victims of their own looting which is unprecedented in the history of the country. My hope is that they would be brought to justice.

    “You heard President Buhari saying last week that after they finished looting the treasury, they even borrowed to loot. You heard the President say that they took a loan from China and they already had taken $600 million from the loan. By now if they were still there, there would have finished the rest.

    “In the South-South zone, look at the debt profile, Edo is the least borrowed. The only major loan we have taken since I assumed office was a N25 billion bond out of which we have paid over N20 billion because we are paying N530 million every month.

    “As we speak, we have only about N5 billion left of that loan which will be liquidated before the end of this tenure. You heard of bailout, find out what PDP states are borrowing under the bailout plan, not for development but to pay salaries. But Edo State Government is up-to-date with salaries without bail out. You need to interrogate facts and not report these people as if they are responsible people because when you do that, people don’t know the difference between mischief makers and responsible people.

    “PDP should simply shut up because they destroyed everything. Carry out your own investigations. You read in the papers how much our neighboring states are borrowing. You heard of N20billion, N30 billion under two months. To do what, to settle the invisibles? You hear them talking about N14.5 billion. We are not borrowing to pay salaries, we are able to do that in spite of the massive looting by the PDP. I appeal to the media because you are victims and you must interrogate these thieves when they break the highway rules and want to divert you. When you ask questions, they say you want to witch hunt. Why won’t you witch hunt when the witches are killing people in the village?”