Seyi Makinde, governor of Oyo, says the N570 billion disbursed to states did not come from the federal government.
In a newsletter, the governor said President
Bola Tinubu’s remark that 36 states were given N570 billion to “expand
livelihood support to their citizens” is “another case of misrepresentation of
facts”.
In a nationwide broadcast on Sunday, Tinubu
said the federal government has released N570 billion to 36 states to “expand
livelihood support to their citizens”.
“In addition, we have introduced the Skill-Up Artisans Programme (SUPA); the Nigerian Youth Academy (NIYA); and the National Youth Talent Export Programme (NATEP),” the president had said.
“Also, more than N570
billion has been released to the 36 states to expand livelihood support to
their citizens, while 600,000 nano-businesses have benefitted from our
nano-grants.”
After the president’s speech, some Nigerians asked their
governors what they used their share of the money for.
In his response, the Oyo governor said the federal
government was just a “conduit”.
Makinde said the fund named NG-CARES is not a grant to
states but a loan.
“The said funds were part of the World Bank-assisted
NG-CARES project — a Programme for Results intervention,” Makinde said.
“The World Bank facilitated an intervention to help States
in Nigeria with COVID-19 Recovery. CARES means COVID-19 Action Recovery
Economic Stimulus.
“It was called the Programme for Results because States had
to use their money in advance to implement the programme.
“After the World Bank
verified the amount spent by the State, it reimbursed the States through the
platform provided at the Federal level.
“The federal government did not give any State money; they
were simply the conduit through which the reimbursements were made to States
for money already spent.
“It is important to note that the World Bank fund is a loan
to States, not a grant. So, States will need to repay this loan.
“Note also that NG-CARES, which we christened Oyo-CARES in
our State, predates the present federal administration.
“So, in direct
response to the message, the Federal Government did not give Oyo State any
money.
“We were reimbursed funds (N5.98 billion in the first
instance and N822 million in the second instance) we invested in the three
result areas of NG-CARES, which includes inputs distribution to smallholder
farmers within our State.”
WHAT IS NG-CARES?
The Nigeria COVID-19 action recovery and economic stimulus,
also known as NG-CARES, is an initiative of
the World Bank and the federal government.
It was designed to “expand access to livelihood support and
food security services, and grants for poor and vulnerable households and
firms”.
The $750 million initiative is aimed at supporting the 36
states and the FCT to “mitigate the impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19)
pandemic on the livelihoods of poor and vulnerable households and
microenterprises in the country”.
The federal government is the borrowing agency.
States are expected to use the funds for development
projects and programmes.
The federal government recently disbursed N438 billion to 34
states and the FCT. The breakdown can be seen here.
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