Month: December 2023

 

Oyo Govt gives breakdown of 2024 Budget proposal

 

By Adewale Owoade

 

The Government of Oyo State has given a breakdown of the N434.2billion 2024 Budget proposal presented to the State House of Assembly by the state governor, Seyi Makinde.

 

The state’s Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Prof. Musibau Babatunde, gave the breakdown of the budget estimates on Friday in a parley with Civil Society Organisations and members of the press, at the conference room of the Ministry.

 

Babatunde, a Professor of Economics, said the 2024 Budget was prepared against the backdrop of continuing global and national economic challenges, noting that the government would execute the budget to bring about sustainable economic recovery in the state.

 

According to him: “The proposed budget reflects the economic recovery plan of the present administration towards addressing the current economic challenges and fast track economic recovery.

 

“The budget indicates the commitment of the administration to economic reforms necessary for creating opportunities towards achieving economic recovery and also reflects government desires on sectoral allocations to reflate the economy, unlock private investment, stimulate effective demand, accelerate economic growth and achieve sustainable development.”

 

Presenting the breakdown and analysis, the commissioner stated that the highlight of the budget is part of the physical transparency and accountability of Governor Makinde-led administration.

 

He added that the highlights of the budget, which according to him, would determine the destiny of Oyo State in the next fiscal year, is adequately captured to reflect the governor’s Roadmap for Sustainable Development 2023-2027 and the Sustainable Action for Economic Recovery (SAfER) programme that followed the subsidy removal and exchange rate unification.

 

Professor Babatunde equally explained that the estimate for recurrent expenditure in the 2024 Budget proposal is N211,884,445,738.94, representing 48.80 per cent of the budget, while the capital expenditure of N222,337,320,199.85 represents 51.20 per cent of the budget.

 

He further said that the percentage of the recurrent expenditure estimate was high because it had been designed to capture the monthly wage award of N25,000 to civil servants and N15,000 to pensioners, which increased the state’s wage by an additional N2.8billion in its first month of payment and is expected to run for six months.

 

He noted, however, that the 2024 Budget would focus more on ongoing capital projects and programmes that would boost human capital, unlock the state’s economic potential through agriculture and agribusiness value chain, tourism and solid minerals development, as well as promotion of Public Private Partnership, among others.

 

The sectoral analysis of the proposed budget showed the government’s commitment to the economic recovery of the state, as the social and economic sectors, which comprise education, health, youth and sports, culture and tourism, agriculture, works and infrastructure and finance received the largest allocations.

 

Prof Babatunde also used the opportunity to highlight the revenue projections in the budget draft, stating that the state government looks forward to earning N86 billion in statutory allocations, N71.5 billion in Value Added Tax, N10 billion in Excess Crude, N36.3 billion in capital receipts, among others.

 

He added that the government has projected N72 billion as the Internally Generated Revenue for the year 2024 at the rate of N6 billion monthly, noting, however, that residents of the states should not exercise fears over tax increment.

 

Prof Babatunde maintained that the state is reviewing the current tax administration to ensure that more taxable entities are brought into the tax net, while it will also block leakages by improving revenue collection through ICT.

 

The commissioner also gave an assurance that there would be control and enforcement on spending limits to ensure that a sound budgetary system is put in place to include aggregate fiscal discipline, efficiency and effective spending of the budget.

 

Earlier in his opening remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Budget and Economy Planning, Dr Sunday Ojelabi, said the budget breakdown was necessary so as to involve all stakeholders on the implementation of the 2024 Budget.

 

Those present at the budget analysis were the Executive Assistant to the Governor on Finance, Budget and Economic Planning, Alhaji Gafar Bello; Special Adviser, Budget and Economic Planning, Hon. Simeon Oyeleke; and Director of Admin and Supplies in the Ministry, Alhaji H.A. Bello, among others.

 

The House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations on Friday summoned the minister of Finance, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Nigeria Communications Commission, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, Nigeria Port Authority, Nigeria Maritime and Safety Agency, Minister of State for Petroleum, and CBN Governor, among others, to appear in person on Monday unfailingly.

This is as the committee turned back representatives of CBN, Customs, and FIRS and demanded their heads appear.

 

The interactive session was to discuss further areas where the country could find money to fund the 2024 budget.

 

The committee, chaired by Rep. Abubakar Bichi, resumed an interactive session with GOEs over the 2024 declaration of revenue target, insisting that projected revenue is not enough for the country.

 

He attributed rising inflation to a major problem, hence the need for GOEs to appear before the committee for further interaction.

 

Bichi noted that reducing the burden of Nigeria’s debt profile, sectoral budgetary allocations, and the dynamics of budget releases, economic diversification strategies, and revenue generation forecasts is needed to facilitate the enactment of the bill and effective implementation of the Appropriations Act, 2024.

 

According to him, these revenue-generating agencies must come with money because, without money, there is no magic the president can perform to ensure the realization of the Renewed Hope Budget.

 

He said President Bola Tinubu’s 2024 budget is fantastic, but money is needed to fund the budget.

Bitchi said, “The objective of this engagement is, among others, to provide highlights on some key issues in relation to the preparation, enactment, and implementation of the 2024 budget.”

He said there were concerns about addressing the infrastructural gap in the country, eliminating poverty, and generally achieving the 8-Point Renewed Hope Agenda.

 

He added that there was a need to ensure that all loose ends to revenue were tied, adding that this could have a gross impact on the government’s ability to implement the 2024 Appropriation Bill when passed.

 

“While the revised MTEF and FSP showed that revenue-generating efforts by the present administration are already yielding fruit, more needs to be done to ensure that government-owned enterprises optimize their revenue-generating potential.”

 

Speaking, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Alhaji Atiku Bagudu, said the interactive session represented a beckon of light.

He said, “Mr President is ambitious, and he is very clear that Nigeria is not where it is; the revenue we collect is about 10 percent, and the president has directed that we raise it to 18 per cent.”

 

“We understand that the lawmakers are interested in how money is spent. You are also interested in how you can cooperate with the executive to ensure we take Nigeria to a greater height.

 

He said the 2024 proposal had increased spending, which included infrastructure and education, among others. He added that the budget appropriation had a proposal for $100 billion for the Sustainable Agriculture Fund.

 

According to him, we also want to ensure that our manufacturing sector will worry less about demand than production. We have provided a total of N50 billion in student loans.

 

He said these were game-changing moves, which are a product of legislation, adding that “all of us must work together to ensure we interrogate the revenue-generating agencies.

The government of Canada has increased the proof of funds for Nigerians and other international students from ₦8,025,000.00 ($10,000) to ₦16,050,000.0000 ($20,000).

Marc Miller, Canadian Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, made this announcement in a statement on Thursday, saying the new requirement will take effect from January 1, 2024.

 

“Starting January 1, 2024, the cost-of-living financial requirement for study permit applicants will be raised so that international students are financially prepared for life in Canada.

 

For 2024, a single applicant will need to show they have $20,635, representing 75% of LICO, in addition to their first year of tuition and travel costs.

 

“This change will apply to new study permit applications received on or after January 1, 2024,” the statement reads in part.

 

For close to two decades, study permit applicants for international students have remained at $10,000.

 

This review, which takes effect from January 1, “will help prevent student vulnerability and exploitation,” the statement added.

 

The UK

This proof of funds review comes days after the United Kingdom introduced a new set of rules that would make it more difficult for Nigerians and others to obtain a visa

Home Secretary James Cleverly announced the changes in the House of Commons on Monday.

 

The government said it would now set a minimum annual salary for foreign workers to be eligible for a skilled worker visa at £38,700 from £26,200.

 

The figure itself is more than the existing median average salary of a full-time worker in Britain.

 

He exempted health and social care workers, but said they would be prevented from bringing family dependents.

 

He reaffirmed that Britain would increase the surcharge that migrants pay to access the NHS by 66 percent, to £1,035.

 

Care England, a charity representing independent adult social care providers, said immigration had been “saving the social care sector”. Staff shortages have been exacerbated by Brexit.

 

Critics have said this effectively imposes a double charge on migrant workers, as employees also pay National Insurance charges, which go towards covering healthcare.

 

“For 2024, a single applicant will need to show they have $20,635, representing 75% of LICO, in addition to their first year of tuition and travel costs.

 

“This change will apply to new study permit applications received on or after January 1, 2024,” the statement reads in part.

Prince Abdulfatai Adeyemi, son of the immediate past Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi is dead. He was aged 47.

 

He died after a brief illness in the early hours of Friday at the University Teaching Hospital, Ibadan.

 

Prince Adeyemi, fondly called D-Gov. was said to have been ill for a while.

He aspired for the Oyo Federal Constituency on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party in 2019 but lost the election to his brother, Prince Akeem Adeyemi popularly known as Skimme.

 

Late Adeyemi was appointed as Chairman of the Oyo State Local Government Pension Board by Gov. Seyi Makinde in the Omituntun 1.0 administration.

 

Details later…