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The Senate has approved the extension of implementation of the supplementary appropriation bill from 31st December 2023 to March 31st 2024.
The move comes after the Leader of the Senate, Senator. Opeyemi Bamidele presented an amendment to the 2023 Appropriation Bill and the 2023 Supplementary Appropriation Bill to allow for the life of the bill to extend beyond December 31st, 2023, as stipulated.
Sen. Bamidele explained that the 2023 Appropriation Act provided that the budget runs for 12 months from January 1st to December 31st, 2023. He noted that the funds for the 2023 supplementary appropriation bill are unlikely to be utilized if the capital implementation is not extended.
The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio put the bill to a voice vote after the third reading where the senators affirmed its approval.
Recall that in October, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the N2.17 trillion supplementary budget which was subsequently approved by the National Assembly in October.
Although the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun had earlier hinted that the 2023 supplementary budget will run concurrently with the 2024 budget.A breakdown of the 2023 Appropriation Act shows that of the total 2.17 trillion, N1.01 trillion was allocated to recurrent expenditure while N1.16 was earmarked for capital expenditure.
Major capital projects in the budget include; the allocation of N300 billion set aside for the rehabilitation of Eko and Third Mainland bridges, along with the development, repair, and maintenance of various roads across the nation.
N200 billion for the provision of seed, agricultural input, supplies, and agricultural implements and infrastructure to support the expansion of production.
The federal government also allocated N210 billion for wage awards to federal civil servants across the country and about N5.5 billion for the take-off of the student loan program in January.
