By Steve Agbota
Following the report of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework Fiscal Strategy Paper (MTEF/FSP,) the Senate has approved the removal of Government-Owned Enterprises (GOEs) from the 2023 national budget.
The affected agencies are; Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).
Others include Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Federal Inland Revenue Service, (FIRS) Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMPDRA) and Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC). The decision of the Senate was sequel to the report of the MTEF/FSP submitted by the Senate Committee on Finance, chaired by Senator Adeola Olamilekan, which was considered on Wednesday.
According to the report: “That 10 out of the 63 GOEs be placed on cost of collections to serve as a test case for other GOEs which can be added in the future. The list of these GOEs include , NCC, CAC, NPA, NIMASA, NUPRC, FIRS, CUSTOMS, NMPDRA, JAMB, NAFDAC, with immediate effect with the proposed finance bill 2023 coming up with the amendment of the existing Act of the above mentioned agencies.”
Meanwhile, the Committee has pegged the total aggregate expenditure for 2023 at N19.76 trillion – comprising of a Total Recurrent (Non-debt) of N8.53 trillion; Personnel Costs (MDAs) of N827.8 billion; Capital expenditure (exclusive of transfers) N3.96 trillion; Special Intervention (recurrent) amounting to N350 billion; and Special intervention (capital) of N7 billion.