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By Abdulwaheed Olayinka Adubi, Kaduna
A draft Budget of Continuous Growth and Development to the tune of N370.33 billion has been presented to the Kaduna State House of Assembly, by Governor Nasir El-Rufai.
Presenting the Budget on Tuesday, El-Rufai explained that the proposed 2023 budget estimate assumed that crude oil pricing will stabilize around 70 dollars per barrel, saying that the official exchange rates would be around N435.57 kobo to the dollars.
He said, considering the economic parameters, the budget is based on; making provisions for funding of ongoing vital infrastructure projects. maintaining the minimum budgeting base line of 60 percent for capital expenditure and 40 percent for recurrent.
The 2023 draft Budget was said to have been prepared on the expectation that the base effects would decline as economic activities normalise in the non-oil sector, meaning that the economy will grow at a much faster pace during the year in view.
In the next year’s budget, education and health would gulp about 40 per cent of the total sum, cutting away N65.7 billion representing about 25 per cent and N23.4 billion representing about 15 per cent, respectively.
According to the governor, the proposed 370.33 billion budget of the 2023 has increased with 21.82 per cent over the 22 per cent reversed appropriation of N303.99 billion, while the sum of over N242 billion was proposed as capital expenditure and the sum of N127 billion represent the recurrent expenditure in 2023 estimate.
On the performances of the previous year’s budget, El-rufai however, noted that the 2021 budget performance was at 97 per cent, which according to him is the highest ever in the history of the state and Nigeria at large.
Though, he said that the 2020 budget was at 73 per cent in performance due the covid-19 pandemic before recovering to 97 per cent in 2021.
The governor assured the Assembly that as his administration winds down in a few months, all the ongoing projects would be completed.
In his response, the Speaker of the Kaduna state House of Assembly, Hon. Yusuf Ibrahim Zailani, promised that the budget will be studied thoroughly and that corrections will be made when necessary.