2023 Budget: Ministry of Works laments funding challenges

By Haruna Salami

Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has again lamented funding challenges facing his ministry in the 2023 budget proposal before the National Assembly.

While defending the budget of the ministry before the Senate Committee on Works and Housing said “insufficient budgetary provisions which is self-evidence in what you have seen and heard is the biggest challenge facing the Ministry of works and Housing”

While expressing concerned over the short fall in 2023 appropriation for the Ministry of Works and Housings, he disclosed that “in 2022 appropriation, the ministry got N441.1 billion capital budget as against the N146 billion for 2023”

According to the minister “the President has signed the Executive Order 11 which is to deepen our commitment to maintenance of public buildings and I hope that the private sector will embrace this.

“The Ministry intends to keep the implementation of this Executive Order at the forefront. Over the years this Executive Order will create so many businesses as many are registering as facility management contractors”.

“Their engagement is triggering supply in consumables, which is also helping the market of local manufacturer”

While urging the lawmakers to amend the procurement Act. as a result of global challenges and inflationary trend in the cost of materials, the minister urged the public private partnership (PPP) to step in, DailyTimesNGR gathered.

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Fashola urged the Senate to create an enabling environment for the PPP to operate and do a wholesome review in order to enable Ministry, Department and Agencies (MDAs), to adjust their procurement as according to him “so that contractors do not leave sites as a result of piece meal variations of contracts”.

“The BPE can lead this process and look at the major items that impacted. We may not be able to provide for everything, but clearly, even if we have variations of prices you cannot shift Diesel price from 250 to over N800. That is a totally different contract”.