Acting President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday wrote a letter asking for the consent of the National Assembly to borrow $1.5 billion from international lenders to fund projects in 10 states across the country.
The letter by Acting President Osinbajo, dated June 1, 2017 was read out in both chambers of parliament. The states’ loans requests were parts of the 2016-2018 External Borrowing (Rolling) Plan whose approval the presidency had sought since last August.
“I write in reference to my earlier letter requesting for the consideration and approval of the Senate (and House of Representatives) for the 2016-2018 External Borrowing Rolling Plan and to request the Senate (and the House) to separate the States’ Projects from the items listed therein with a view to giving them accelerated consideration,” Osinbajo wrote in his letter to both Senate President Bukola Saraki and Speaker Yakubu Dogara.
Osinbajo sought approval of the lawmakers to allow Kaduna State and Ogun State access $350 million each for their respective State Development Policy Operation (DPO) from the World Bank.
Ebonyi and Abia states are also to secure $70 million (for Ebonyi Ring Road Project) and $100 million (for Abia Rural Access and Mobility Project) from a credit facility to be co-financed by the African Development Bank and the Islamic Development Bank, Osinbajo further told the National Assembly.
The letter by the Acting President, said the Islamic Development Bank is proving $422.4 million loan facility to finance projects in four states as follows: Katsina, Health System Project, $110 million; Jigawa, Integrated Rural Development Project, $32.4 million; Ebonyi, Ring Road Project (to be co-financed with the AfDB), $80 million; and Kano, Integrated Agricultural and Water Resources Development, $200 million.
Finally, for their respective Third National Urban Water Sector Reform Project (NUWSRP-III) Plateau, Enugu, Kano and Ondo states are looking forward to accessing $200 million from the French Development Agency.
The proposed states loans amount to $1,492,400,000.
“It will be highly appreciated if you could kindly give this request an expedited consideration and approval to enable states meet up with all other effectiveness conditions for the implementation of the projects in their respective states”, he wrote.
Since last August when President Muhammadu Buhari first sent the $30 billion 2016-2018 borrowing plan to the National Assembly, no part has ever got the statutorily required legislative approval.
In April, the president wrote the lawmakers, further to the last year’s initial letter, seeking approval to secure about $6.4 billion dollar loans from the World Bank and China to fund infrastructural objectives across the country and combat polio outbreak in the North-East.
