2022 budget: Niger government earmarks N1.3bn for leave grant

The Niger State government said it has earmarked the sum of N1.3 billion to offset the state’s civil servants leave grant with the view to boost their productivity. 

The State Commissioner for Finance and Budget, Alhaji  Zakari Abubakar, who is overseeing the planning commission ministry stated this while giving an insight into the State 2022 budget.  

He disclosed that the Governor Abubakar Sani Bello- led administration in the State is positioned to accord prime importance to the state civil service as a catalyst to drive the administration developmental policy.

According to him, the incumbent APC-led administration in the state said it has discovered that some civil servants in some ministries, departments and agencies were not captured in the 2021 leave grants,  hence the need to ensure that such categories were adequately captured for the 2022 budget .

He explained that in view of the importance the administration attaches to the welfare of civil servants the sum of N1,331,367,685,91 representing 1.77 per cent of the budget was allocated to the payment of  civil servants leave grant. 

The commissioner further disclosed that agriculture will be accorded top priority in the year 2022 as the state gradually battles its way out of the devastating economic meltdown of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

To this end, the commissioner explained that a deliberate and sustainable Agricultural Policy aimed at encouraging agricultural value chain for the state will be pursued rigorously as over N5 billion is being allocated to the sub-sector which comprises of improving agricultural output at N3.7 billion and livestock development at N1.7 billion. 

“There is no doubt that this government is determined to carry the agricultural sector to another level as we look forward to diversifying the economy of the state,” he concluded.

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