FEC approves 2019-2021 MTEF/FSP

…Pegs oil benchmark at $60, 2.3m bpd, exchange rate at N303/$1
…Okays $1.5m AfDB loan for Lagos-Abidjan Highway
The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the 2019 to 2021 Medium Term Expenditure Frameworks (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP).

The projection, according to the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Sen. Udoma Udo Udoma, would soon be submitted to the National Assembly for approval.

The approval was given on Wednesday at the FEC meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The MTEF/FSP is designed to translate the strategic development objectives of the economic Recovery and Growth Plans (ERGP) into a realistic and implementable budget framework for the medium term.

Key highlights include oil price benchmark of $60, oil production of 2.3m barrels per day, exchange rate of N305 to 1USD, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate of 3.01% and a budget size of N8.73 trillion, about N400 billion less than the N9.2 trillion of 2018.

The Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, disclosed that FEC also granted approval for a loan of $1.5m from the African Development Fund (AfDB) to finance the multinational Lagos to Abidjan corridor highway development project study.

The multinational project will be a highway with six lanes, dual carriage way project that will involve five countries, including Nigeria, Benin Republic, Republic of Cote D’Ivore, Ghana and Togo.

The Minister said that the decision was taken at the 42nd meeting of the Authorities of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States ECOWAS in 2013.

“The African Development Bank in 2016, as a follow up, approved the total sum of $13.5 million for the whole project to finance both the study in form of a loan as well as a grant,” she stated.

She disclosed that the entire fund had been distributed amongst the participating countries and the component for Nigeria is $1.5 million.

“The FEC has approved that we accept this facility, so that the project study can be commissioned towards the planing of the execution of the highway project itself” Ahmed added.

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, disclosed that the Ministry presented a memorandum for the award of contract for the rehabilitation of Lagos -Badagry – Seme road project.

The road project which is a total of 46 kilometers, excludes the parts from Eric More to Okokomaiko section in Lagos.

He said: “Council approved 46 kilometers from Agbara to Seme border, out of which 24 kilometers will be six lanes, while 22 kilometers will retain the current four lanes to be reconstructed and rehabilitated.

“FEC approved the project at the cost of N63.023 billion.”

He explained that the road is part of the Lagos to Abidjan corridor while Nigeria side of it is from Eric More to Badagry to Seme border.

“Ghana has done theirs, Cote D’ Ivore has done theirs, Togo and Benin have something in place. Some of them have to move because of coastal erosion by the Atlantic, and how to reintegrate all if that is part of the study that is being funded by the ADB to ensure simple and efficient border controls”

The Ministry, Fashola added, also got approval for the construction of the road linking Gwarzo to Karaie, a 20 kilometers high way project in Kano State, at the cost of N1.029 billion, as well as approval to terminate and re-award the contract for the 10 megawatts Katsina wind energy project.

The project with a total of 37 turbines has 15 already completed while 22 are in different stages of completion. The 15 complete are already generating about 4 megawatts of electricity and are being used by the Power Distribution Company.

He explained that the main contractors are not giving government the kind of cooperation needed from them.

“We found out that the local contractor that they hired is the one actually doing the job.

“We have decided to terminate the contract, and use the balance to pay the local contractor who has done 15 to instali the remaining 22.

“Council approved that at N121.073 million out of the existing contract. So it is not a new contract. It is so that the contractor can complete the work in the next five months.

Council also approved the African trans-Sahara highway project from Algiers to Lagos.

“The Nigerian section is the Lagos to Katsina border side, transversing Ibadan, Oyo, Ogbomosho, Ilorin, Katsina, Abuja, Kano, etc.

“If you look at what the President has done in the last few days, a committee on the African Free Trade agreement protocols, these are the critical infrastructuresthat link us. So, from South to North, from Lagos through the West Coast, are the interconnections on how we relate with other African countries,” he stated.

Water Resources Minister, Suleiman Adamu, also announced that Council approved the revised estimated total cost for the construction of Zobe regional Water supply scheme in Katsina State, phases 1 (a) and 2, as part of efforts to complete infrastructure inherited by the Federal Government.

The project was first awarded in 1992 but was abandoned, with a new contractor taking over in 2009, but was never paid.

Adamu stated that the Buhari administration inherited the project at 75% completion in 2015.

He said: “Council approved the augmentation of N12.15 billion to bring the project to a total of N22.1 billion with an additional completion period of 18 months”.

He disclosed that the Federal Government recently signed a N10 billion agreement with the Katsina State government for the completion of the phase 1(b) of the project.