The Federal Government has said that 11 per cent (11%) of the 2017 Budget will be financed using the money recovered from the people who loot the nation’s treasury.
The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Sen. Udoma Udo Udoma, made the disclosure on Monday in Abuja while speaking at the public presentation and breakdown of the recently enacted 2017 Budget.
According to Sen. Udoma, the government has secured necessary legal permissions to spend the recovered money thus the figure presented is not a projection.
Udoma noted that the government has in 2017 Budget earmarked “N46 billion for Sepecial Economic Zone Projects to be set up in each of the geo-political zones to drive manufacturing and export.”
He added that “overall budget deficit of N2.356 trillion in 2017 represents 2.18% of GDP while the projected deficit is within 3% GDP threshold as stipulated in the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) 2007.”
He disclosed futher that “a total of N35 billion is expected as revenue from sales of the government property and privatization proceeds.”
He added that while Capital expenditure is estimated at N2.36 trillion, Recurrent stood at N2.99 trillion.
Earlier, in his opening remarks, the Director-General of the Budget Office, Mr. Ben Akabueze, said the present administration is determined to bridge the gap between citizens and government by putting in place some vital measures.
According to Akabueze, “we have taken a step further to provide citizens’ reader-friendly version of the 2017 Federal Budget.”
He added that “the Citizens’ Budget provides details of the Federal Budget in a non-technical manner.
“To enhance citizens’ participation across the entire budget cycle, the Budget Office is implementing a Citizen Portal on its website, in addition, a dedicated hotline for citizens with queries or questions on the Budget is being activated,’ he added.
The Citizens’s Budget and other pertinent information on the 2027 Budget are available on the Budget Office’s website-www.budgetoffice.gov.ng
