The $22.7 billion external borrowing plan of the federal government, which had sparked controversy weeks ago, has been suspended, as announced by the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed.
Zainab revealed the decision at the 2020 International Conference on the Nigerian Commodities Market organized by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in Abuja on Monday, March 16. She attributed the suspension to the current global economic realities.
She also stated that the government will concentrate on diversifying the country’s economy and will monitor the market until the right time for the loan arises.
“The current market indices do not support any external borrowings at the moment, despite that the parliament is still doing its work on the borrowing plan. One arm of the parliament has completed their work, and the other arm is still working. So, it is a process controlled entirely by the parliament itself. We are waiting. The expenditures that are not critical must be deferred to a later date when things become more normal. Several national plans, programmes, and projects have been directed at diversifying the production and revenue structures of the economy.”
The loan, intended to fund projects like the Nigeria Electricity Transmission and Access Project, the Social Inclusion and Welfare Advancement project (renamed the National Social Safety Net Project), and the Economic Reforms and Governance Project (renamed the Fiscal Governance Project), was expected to be sourced from the World Bank, African Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank, Japan International Cooperation Agency, German Development Bank, China-Exim Bank, and the French Development Agency.