Economy
FG Secures $750m World Bank Loan to Finance State Programs
By Tony Obiechina, Abuja
The Federal Government has obtained a $750 million World Bank credit facility to finance the Fiscal Transparency, Accountability and sustainability programmes of 36 states of the Federation.
The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Dr Zainab Ahmed who disclosed this on Tuesday, said that $700 million of the money would be to support the states through the provision of performance-based grants.
She explained that the balance of $50 million is for the financing of technical assistance to enable the States to achieve specified Disbursement Linked Indicators (DLIs) towards qualification for the grants.
She further explained that the DLIs are derived from the already established 22-Point Fiscal Sustainability Plan (FSP) by the Federal Government and the Open Government Partnership (OGP) commitments.
The Minister made these remarks while formally inaugurating the National Steering Committee for the States Fiscal, Transparency, Accountability and Sustainability (SFTAS) Programme-for-Results in Abuja.
According to her, the Programme was introduced in 2017 by the Federal Government in collaboration with the World Bank to strengthen Fiscal Transparency, Accountability and Sustainability in the Nigerian States.
“The DLIs are derived from the already established 22-Point Fiscal Sustainability Plan (FSP) by the Federal Government and the Open Government Partnership (OGP) commitments.
“This is aimed at strengthening the desired fiscal reforms at the sub-national level and participation in the Programme is open to all States of the Federation, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT)”, Ahmed noted.
Stressing the importance of the programme to the Government, the minister enjoined all the stakeholders involved to be fully committed to ensure its success.
She said, “It is gratifying to note that the implementation of the Programme has commenced in earnest with a fully-functional Programme Coordination Unit (PCU) domiciled in the Home Finance Department, Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning.
“This underscores the need for the National Steering Committee to be brought on board in order to support the PCU to accelerate the pace of Programme implementation.
“As you are aware, the National Steering Committee (NSC) is expected to give strategic direction to the PCU and ensure the smooth implementation of the Programme. I commend the commitment demonstrated so far by the World Bank team, the PCU, the implementing Agencies and Partners”.
According to the Minister, the key roles and responsibilities of the Committee include, to review the progress in the implementation of the Programme; the status of disbursements to States; the status of PCU’s monitoring and evaluation, communication and outreach activities, including the publication of the Annual Performance Assessment (APA) results.
Others are, to review the status of delivery of the capacity building programme across the States by implementing agencies and partners; to provide strategic guidance for the Programme; and any other activities that would facilitate the implementation of the programme.
Speaking earlier, the Permanent Secretary (Special Duties), in the Ministry, Mr Aliyu Ahmed, noted that the National Steering Committee (NSC) occupies a strategic position in the governance structure of the SFTAS Programme.
According to him, the Committee is the highest decision making body of the Programme, “hence its membership is being drawn from critical stakeholder institutions of the Federal and State Governments.”
He explained that the SFTAS Programme is an upgraded Government initiative towards enhancing public financial Management by promoting fiscal discipline at sub-national level, adding that its aim is to strengthen fiscal transparency, accountability and sustainability in the 36 States of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory”.
Members of the Committee include, Permanent Secretary, Finance, Federal Ministry of Finance, Chairman; Auditor-General of the Federation; Director-General, National Bureau of Statistics (NBS); Director-General, Debt Management Office (DMO); Executive Secretary, Joint Tax Board; Administrator/CEO, Public Service Institute of Nigeria (PSIN); Director-General, Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and
Director, International Economic Relations Department (IERD), Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning.
Others included: Six State Commissioners of Finance (representing the six geopolitical zones); Director, Statistics Department of the Central Bank of
Nigeria; National Programme Coordinator, Open Government Partnership (OGP) Secretariat, Federal Ministry of Justice; and
Director, Home Finance/National Programme Coordinator as Member/Secretary.
The Naira appreciated in the official market on Friday, trading at N1,492.
49 against the Dollar. Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) website showed the Naira gained N6.57. This marks a 0.44 per cent increase compared to Thursday, Feb. 27, when it closed at N1,499.07 to the Dollar. The local currency ended Wednesday’s trading at N1,499. 11 against the Dollar. The Naira has remained relatively stable following CBN reforms aimed at ensuring transparency in the Foreign Exchange (FX) market. Analysts have praised the CBN for the steady progress of the Naira since December 2024. However, Prof. Jonathan Aremu, a retired CBN Director, has warned that it is too soon to celebrate. Aremu, a Professor of International Economic Relations at Covenant University, is also a Regional Expert on Trade and Investment for ECOWAS. Speaking to newsmen on Friday, Aremu called for increased production to sustain the Naira’s gains. He described the currency’s steady appreciation against the Dollar as a positive development. “But it may not be time to celebrate yet because, within this period, we have also seen moments when the Naira depreciated,” he said. He urged the CBN to focus on boosting productive activity in the economy to maintain stability. According to him, the apex bank should look beyond interest rates and consider other factors influencing production and liquidity. “The quantity theory of money states that money supply and population value must equal price and transaction volume in the economy. “If policy only targets money supply without increasing transactions, the expected appreciation of the Naira will not materialise. “The economy needs a higher volume of goods and services. Many goods are available, but their prices depend on supply and demand. “Focusing only on monetary policy is insufficient. More emphasis should be placed on increasing production,” he said. He added that expanding production will further reduce the value of foreign currencies, strengthening the Naira. Aremu noted that foreign exchange is depreciating partly because people cannot afford to buy due to economic conditions. “The CBN should not only focus on reducing money supply but also support the availability of quality goods and services,” he said. Also, Cordros Securities, in its weekly economic update on Friday, attributed the Naira’s appreciation to reduced demand pressure in spite of declining foreign exchange (FX) reserves. The report noted that FX reserves fell by $241.50 million week-on-week to $38.46 billion as of Feb. 27, marking the seventh consecutive week of decline. “We expect FX liquidity to remain strong as a more efficient market and improved confidence continue to support inflows from autonomous sources,” the report stated. “The CBN is also expected to intervene during periods of high volatility, ensuring the Naira remains stable in the near term,” it added. (NAN)
The Naira further appreciated in the official market on Friday, trading at N1,474.
78 to the Dollar.Data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange official forex trading platform revealed that the Naira gained N11.17.
This represents a 0.7 per cent increase compared to the previous day’s trading figure on Thursday, when the local currency closed at N1,485.
95 to the Dollar.Trading in the Investors and Exporters (I&E) Forex window on Friday saw a high of N1,495.
01 and a low of N1,447.50.The Naira has remained stable against the US Dollar since December 2024, supported by sustained reforms from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The reforms aimed at ensuring transparency in the foreign exchange (FX) market.
CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso, speaking in Abuja on Thursday at the 2025 Monetary Policy Forum, stated that recent reforms in the FX segment had continued to attract foreign investments.
Cardoso reassured that the apex bank would sustain efforts to ensure continued inflows. (NAN)
The Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) says that Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has approved CFA Franc to be captured on Nigeria Export Proceed (NXP) forms for the repatriation of export proceeds.
Mrs Nonye Ayeni, Executive Director of the NEPC, disclosed this while addressing newsmen on the Non-Oil Export Performance for the year 2024, in Abuja on Friday.
Ayeni said that the council had engaged the CBN on the inclusion of the CFA Franc, adding that it was a dominant currency in cross border trading.
She said that the currency was one of the currencies to be received as export proceeds by the bankers.
“I am delighted to inform you that the CBN has magnanimously approved CFA to be captured on NXP forms for the repatriation of export proceeds.
“We will be working with CBN and the banks to ensure full implementation.
“I must say that this is a remarkable breakthrough for the council and further reaffirms the impact of the council’s current flagship programme,” she said.
Ayeni said that the council distributed hybrid seedlings and farm inputs to over 1,200 farmers across the country.
She added that the council has also distributed sesame, Hibiscus and farm input in the north, cashew in the west and palm seedlings in the east.
She said that the effort was to enhance the capacity of farmers, and processors and increasing production capacity of the farmers.
The executive director said that the NEPC, under the “Go Global, Go for Certification” campaign, was determined to enhance the quality of Made-in-Nigeria products.
According to her, the council commenced the certification of 400 Small and Mediumsized Enterprise (SME) exporters.
“I am delighted to inform you that we have concluded on some and the balance are currently undergoing the certification process.
“At the end of the exercise, a total of 855 SMEs will have benefited from the scheme between the year 2022 to year 2025.
She said that the scheme aimed to enable the SMEs to acquire international certification to access niche markets.
Ayeni also noted that through the council’s regional and state offices initiated the process of mainstreaming informal border trade.
She said that the effort would increase foreign exchange earnings and help to capture export data for the country.
“Interactive sessions were held with several trade associations operating within some borders”.
According to her, at the end of the exercise, no fewer than 1,116 operators in the informal sector were trained in formalising export trade.
“We will build on this,” she assured. (NAN)
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