The freshly approved 2023 Appropriation Bill by the Senate on Wednesday has a deficit of N10.78 trillion, according to the breakdown of the budget by the from the upper chamber
Senator Barau Jibrin moved that the Senate should receive and consider the report by the Committee on Appropriations, and this was seconded by Senator Yusuf A. Yusuf.
Senator Barau Jibrin then presented the report after which the Senate requested the Committee of Supply to consider the report Clause by Clause.
Senate President Ahmad Lawan congratulated the lawmakers and urged FG to implement the 2022 Appropriations Act.
He said: “Congratulations to this very Distinguished Senate and let me commend all of us in this Ninth Senate for promising and delivering on our promise. This is our Fourth and last Budget before the expiration of our tenure.
“I want to take this to urge the Executive arm of government to implement the 2022 Appropriations Act. We expect total implementation.
“It should be total because this has been what this administration has always tried to do since we came in 2019 and therefore the country and people are better for it. Let me commend the National Assembly for passing the Finance Bill which also guides the implementations of the Appropriations that we pass.”
In October, President Muhammadu Buhari presented the 2023 fiscal budget to the joint session of the National Assembly. Buhari proposed an annual budget of N20.51 trillion for the year 2023, a 19.8% increase when compared to the N17.13 trillion approved for 2022 including the supplementary budget.
It also became the eighth and final budget presented by Buhari over his two tenures as the president of the federation. The highlight of the presented budget is given below:
- A sum of N744.11 billion was earmarked for statutory transfers.
- Non-debt recurrent costs stood at N8.27 trillion
- Personnel costs at N4.99 trillion
- Pensions, Gratuities, and Retirees’ benefits of N854.8 billion
- Overheads of N1.11 trillion
- Capital Expenditure of N5.35 trillion, including the capital component of statutory transfers.
- Sinking fund of N247.73 billion to retire certain maturing bonds.
- Debt service cost stood at N6.31 trillion.
According to the 2023 appropriation bill, which was themed ‘Budget of Fiscal Sustainability and Transition’, total revenue available to fund the budget for the year was estimated at N9.73 trillion, leaving a deficit of N10.78 trillion, representing 4.78% of the nation’s GDP and higher than the 3% threshold set by the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007.
