*Earmark N11.4tr for capital projects, S/West top zones with N3.073tr
*N/Central least with N1.068tr lImo budget awaiting presentation to House of Assembly
*Lagos State budget more than that of South-East, North-East, North-West, and North-Central zones
*FG budgets N6.31 trillion or 30.8 per cent of its total expenditure for debt service in 2023
The Federal and 35 of the 36 state governments, including the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, are to spend the sum of N19.16 trillion on payment of salaries, pensions, emoluments and others in 2023.
They have also budgeted a miserly N11.435 trillion for capital projects.
The recurrent expenditure could be more because most of the budget proposals have not been passed into law by the various legislatures. So far, Imo is the only state that is yet to officially announce its 2023 budget, though the State Executive Council, SEC, had approved the sum of N474 billion.
Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State, is yet to present the budget to the state House of Assembly, hence the breakdown of the approval was not available.
With Imo Exco’s approval of N474 billion and tentative estimation of N700 billion for the FCT, the Federal Government, and the 36 states are budgeting N32.162 trillion for 2023. The figure is higher than the N30.473 trillion in the two tiers of government spending in 2022.
Penultimate week, the National Assembly approved the sum of N607.952 for the Federal Capital Territory, FCT 2022 budget. That of 2023 is in the works but cumulatively, the sum of N1.3 trillion is being planned as 2022 and 2023 budgets for the FCT.
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The Federal Government’s N20.51 trillion 2023 budget is before the National Assembly. Last year, the Federal Government budgeted N19.676 trillion for 2022. Of the 2023 N20.51 trillion budget, only N5.35 trillion or 26 per cent has been allocated to capital projects.
Debt burden
The Federal Government will be spending N6.31 trillion or 30.8 per cent of its total expenditure on debt service in 2023. This is 71.2 per cent higher than the 2022 estimate as it includes interest payment of N1.2 trillion for Ways and Means Recurrent (non-debt) spending, estimated to amount to N8.47 trillion, inclusive of the N200 billion social investment programme.
Aggregate capital expenditure of N5.34 trillion is 26 per cent of total expenditure; and 8.8 per cent lower than the 2022 Budget (inclusive of capital component of statutory transfers, GOEs capital and project-tied loans expenditures).
Breakdown by zones
Among the six geo-political zones of the country, the South-West is the biggest spender with a combined budget of N3.074 trillion for 2023, which is higher than the N2.955 trillion of 2022. In 2023, the South-West states will spend N1.662 trillion on capital projects and N1.412 trillion on recurrent expenditure.
The South-West is followed by the South-South (N2.855 trillion); North-West (N1.637 trillion); South-East (N1.197 trillion); North-East (N1.121 trillion); and North-Central (N1.068 trillion).
In 2022, the North-West budgeted N1.573 trillion; North-East (N958.959 billion); North-East (N1.099 trillion); South-East (N1.117 trillion); and South-South (N2.485 trillion).
Among the zones, North-Central is the only zone that will spend more on recurrent expenditure in 2023. Cumulatively, the six states of the Northeast will spend N506.88 billion on capital projects and N561.587 billion on recurrent projects.
High-spending states
Among the states, Lagos is by far the largest spender with its N1.768 trillion budget that had been passed into law, made up of N1.020 capital expenditure and N748.097 billion recurrent expenditure. The budget is higher than the N1.758 trillion spent in 2022.
The Lagos State budget is more than the budget of the South-East, North-East, North-West, and North-Central zones.
Other high-spending states are Akwa Ibom (N697.005 billion), Delta (N571.6 billion), Rivers (N550.667 billion), Ogun (N472.25 billion), Bayelsa (N385. 2 billion), Kaduna (N370.33 billion), Cross River (N330 billion), Edo (N320.46 billion), and Oyo (N310 billion).
Among the states, 13 allocated more money to recurrent expenditures. They are Benue, Nasarawa, Kogi, Kwara, Plateau, Adamawa, Bauchi, Yobe, Jigawa, Bayelsa, Ekiti, Osun and Oyo.
(VANGUARD)
