President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday said his administration is targeting a 3.76 per cent economic growth in the 2024 fiscal year.
This was as he spotlighted national security, local job creation and poverty reduction as the top priorities of the 2024 Appropriation Bill which he called the ‘Budget of Renewed Hope.’
“A critical focus of this budget and the medium-term expenditure framework is Nigeria’s commitment to a greener future…We expect the economy to grow by a minimum of 3.76 per cent, above the forecasted world average. Inflation is expected to moderate to 21.4 per cent in 2024,” Tinubu said when he presented the 2024 budget proposal to a joint session of the 10th National Assembly in Abuja — his first since assuming office exactly six months ago.
Addressing the NASS, Tinubu promised to overhaul the nation’s internal security architecture to enhance law enforcement capabilities to safeguard lives, property and investments nationwide.
He said the proposed budget prioritises human capital development, with particular attention given to children because human capital remains the most critical resource for national development.
Therefore, “To improve the effectiveness of our budget performance, the government will focus on ensuring value for money, greater transparency, and accountability.
“In this regard, we will work more closely with development partners and the private sector,” he explained.
“To address long-standing issues in the education sector, a more sustainable model of funding tertiary education will be implemented, including the Student Loan Scheme scheduled to become operational by January 2024,” Tinubu added.
On the economy, Tinubu argued that a stable macroeconomic environment is crucial in his administration’s quest to catalyse private investment and accelerate economic growth.
Consequently, he affirmed that his administration shall continue to implement business and investment-friendly measures for sustainable growth.
Giving a breakdown of the 2024 Appropriation Bill, the President said: “Accordingly, an aggregate expenditure of N27.5tn is proposed for the Federal Government in 2024, of which the non-debt recurrent expenditure is N9.92tn while debt service is projected to be N8.25tn and capital expenditure is N8.7tn. Nigeria remains committed to meeting its debt obligations. Projected debt service is 45 per cent of the expected total revenue.
“The budget deficit is projected at N9.18tn in 2024 or 3.88 per cent of GDP. This is lower than the N13.78tn deficit recorded in 2023, which represented 6.11 per cent of GDP. The deficit will be financed by new borrowings totalling N7.83tn, N298.49bn from Privatisation Proceeds, and N1.05tn draw down on multilateral and bilateral loans secured for specific development projects.” (Punch)