FG explains how it plans to spend $30bn loan it is seeking for

Minister of Finance - Mrs Kemi Adeosun

The Federal Government on Thursday gave a breakdown of how the $29.96billion loan it sought the approval of the National Assembly for will be expended.

The government says it has the intention to within the next three years, borrow $29.96billion from the World Bank, African Development Bank, and Japan International Co-operation Agency. It also plans to borrow from an Islamic Development Bank and China EximBank.

Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, gave details of the loan and how government plans to expend it in a statement by her Special Adviser, Mr. Festus Akanbi.

As revealed by the statement, of the total amount, Federal Government will take $25.8billion and states will share $4.1billion.

Further details into how the money will be used show that $18.3billion will be spent on infrastructure development, with $14.6billion going to federal projects and $3.7billion going to state projects.

Some of the projects government said will benefit from the loans include the Mambila Hydro Electric Power Project, which will get $4.8billion and the Abuja Mass Rail Transit project, phase two getting $1.6, Railway Modernisation Coastal Project from Calabar to Port Harcourt-Onne Deep Sea Port segment, $3.5billion is slated for the completion of the project.

$2.4billion according to the statement will go to the Lagos-Kano Railway Modernisation project, with $1.3billion specifically meant for the Lagos-Ibadan segment and $1.1billion for the Kano-Kaduna segment.


Others are $4.5billion for the acquisition of Euro bonds, $3.5billion to be dedicated to the Federal Government budget support, $2.2billion for education and health projects at state and federal levels, $1.2billion will be mapped out for agriculture projects at both levels, while $200million is for economic management and statistics.

President Muhammadu Buhari had on Tuesday forwarded a request to the National Assembly to sanction external borrowing plan of $29.96billion to execute key infrastructure across the country between 2016 and 2018.

The President had said in the request to the National Assembly that laon will target projects across all sectors with special emphasis on infrastructure, agriculture, health, education, water supply, growth and employment generation.
By Ebere Ndukwu …