By Onogwu Muhammad
Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello on Tuesday, presented the total sum of N130,546,068,026 as against N122,970,958,009 of the amended budget for the year 2020 as the 2021 budget to the Kogi State House of Assembly.
The total budget package for the year 2021 represents an increase of N7,575,110,017 or 6.16% when compared with the 2020 final budget.
During the presentation of the budget to the state House of Assembly, the governor stated that the fiscal strategy of his government was anchored on the on-going Public Financial Management Reform (PFM), over the period 2021-2023, that the State Government fiscal policy is directed at:
a. improving the efficiency and effectiveness of spending;
b. achieving better balance between capital and recurrent expenditure;
c. achieving greater control of the wage bill;
d. directing capital expenditure on critical infrastructure such as Agriculture, Health, Road, Education, Security, Water, Youth engagement etc;
e. boosting revenue receipts by identifying and blocking revenue leakages; and
f. gradual fiscal consolidation in order to achieve a level of public spending consistent with macroeconomic stability and sustainable debt.
In summary, the governor disclosed that the draft Revenue Budget has an estimated outlay of N130,546,068,026. This total Budget outlay of N130,546,068,026 is divided into Recurrent Revenue of N82,464,412,854 representing 63.17% and Capital Receipts of N48,081,655,172 representing 36.83%.
On the objectives and target of the 2021 budget, governor Yahaya Bello said The specific fiscal objectives of Kogi State is effective allocation of scarce resources to identified critical programmes and projects, with the following major targets:
a. To improve the quality and affordability of education available to citizens at all levels in order to produce the articulate and skilled manpower required for economic transformation of the State;
b. To improve quality and access to healthcare leading to improvement in efficiency of the healthcare delivery system;
c. To ensure food security and generate a high proportion of the GDP from agriculture;
d. To exploit the full commercial potentials of our location and endowments as a State and expand trade to ensure that products from agricultural and industrial activities have access to markets locally and internationally;
e. To ensure gainful employments for our youths, create entrepreneurship opportunities, especially in Agriculture and Infotech, and develop their talents for livelihood;
f. To achieve sustainable development and promote social cum economic development through culture and tourism;
g. To establish necessary frameworks for a robust mining and solid minerals sector, with an aim to branding Kogi State as the foremost mining and minerals exploitation destination in the country;
h. To improve the road network in the State through continued construction of new roads and bridges and rehabilitation of existing ones in both urban and rural areas;
i. In view of climate change, to continually improve on environmentally friendly practices and enhance our disaster management capabilities in order to secure our people better;
j. To improve the quantity, quality and access to safe water for domestic, commercial and industrial uses as well as improve sanitation and hygiene practices among the citizens;
k. To ensure sustainable use of the environment and continuous management of environmental challenges such as pollution, degradation and gully erosion;
l. To ensure easy and equitable access to lands for agricultural, residential, commercial and industrial uses to all citizens and investors to facilitate the social and economic development of the State;
m. To improve the quantity of decent housing available to citizens and expand affordable housing options through the use of public private partnership arrangements;
n. To improve and facilitate the creation of viable urban communities in the state;
o. To reduce average power outage by expanding the generation and distribution of electricity across the state through regular and renewable options;
p. To rejuvenate the transportation sector and all its players to facilitate Internally Generated Revenue;
q. To provide an enabling environment to facilitate economic and social development in the State as well as introduce and implement reform measures to strengthen governance institutions, i.e. the Civil Service, Pensions Administration, etc.;
r. To increase security of lives and property in the state;
s. To continue to expand the State’s revenue base in the area of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and
t. To reduce the level of Domestic Debt Profile of Kogi State.
Onogwu Muhammed is the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor.
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