Isaac Anumihe, Abuja
The Federal Government has so far released N460 billion out of the N9.12 trillion budgeted for the 2018 fiscal year.
Speaking to newsmen, yesterday, at the ongoing World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund in Bali, Indonesia, Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma said that the release was part of the funds for the implementation of the 2018 budget.
“N460 billion has been released for the 2018 budget.
“The president has sent a request to the National Assembly to support borrowing for the 2018 budget. The National Assembly has been on recess for more than two months. They didn’t do it before they left. So now that they are back if they approve the borrowing plan, we will move quickly” he said.
He painted a good picture of the economy, saying that things are looking up as the economy is growing by 2.1 per cent and the foreign reserves have hit $44 billion.
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“We expect that by the end of this year, we will be growing by 2.1 per cent. Things are going well in Nigeria. Not as well as we want to be, but we are working hard to improve things.
“We are in a stronger position than 2015. Our foreign reserves are $44 billion and we have a trading surplus while our imports are not increasing. We have been able to manage those imports. All the indices are positive” he noted.
Earlier, the minister had said that the Muhammadu Buhari administration was working very hard to stimulate the economy with a view to restoring it to buoyancy.
“The Buhari administration has worked hard to ensure that those election promises are fulfilled.
“The present government inherited a challenged economy with very weak fundamentals, but has worked hard towards not only getting the economy out of recession, but placing it on a path of sustained inclusive growth through a series of policy initiatives and deliberate actions”, he said.