The President, Muhammadu Buhari has sent an N819.5 billion supplementary budget to the National Assembly.
He asked the National Assembly to approve the budget. The budget is expected to be funded by domestic borrowings.
This will increase the budget deficit to N8.17 trillion, and the deficit GDP ratio to 4.43 per cent.
The president’s request was read by Femi Gbajabiamila, speaker of the house of representatives, during the plenary session on Wednesday.
He said the 2022 supplementary budget would be used to finance infrastructural projects across the country, and food security, following devastating floods across the country.
The national assembly had passed N17.12 trillion as the 2022 budget, but it was later revised to N17.31 trillion on Buhari’s request who cited the impacts of the Russia-Ukraine war on the country’s economy.
In the latest request, contained in a letter to the national assembly, Buhari said the 2022 flood has affected infrastructure across the nation.
“The year 2022 has witnessed the worst flood incidents in recent history which have caused massive destruction to farmlands at the point close to harvest season.
“This may compound the situation of food security and nutrition in this country,” the letter reads.
“The flood also devastated the road infrastructure across the 36 states and the FCT, [and] has affected sections of major roads and bridges nationwide that are critical to the movement of goods and services.
“The water sector was also affected by the flood and there is a need to complete some ongoing critical projects that have achieved about 85 project completion.
“The nine critical projects proposed in the sector cut across water supply, dam projects and irrigation projects nationwide.
“I have, therefore, approved the supplementary 2022 appropriation of N819,536,137,812 all of which are capital expenditure.”
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