'Yomi Ayeleso, Author at Tribune Online

The Ekiti state governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, has presented N109 billion 2021 appropriation bill to the state House of Assembly. Fayemi who presented the appropriation at the floor of the Assembly, on Tuesday, said the budget would help his administration in transforming the state and improve the lives and livelihood of residents in the coming year. The governor who christened it, 'Budget of Recovery and Economic Restoration' said the recurrent expenditure would gulp N57 billion representing 53% while about N51 billion has been earmarked for capital expenditure with 47 per cent of the total budget. He disclosed that in the 2021 budget, Agriculture and rural development will gulp about N7.9 billion representing 7 per cent; Infrastructure and Industrial development with N25.2 billion at 23 per cent and N21.9 billion representing 20 per cent was provided for the knowledge economy of the administration. He added that the social investment programme for the citizens would gulp N25.2 billion which represents 23% and the expenses relating to governance would take N29.3 billion representing 27 per cent. Fayemi noted that the budget was prepared in accordance with the 2021-2023 Medium Term Expenditure Framework with crude oil benchmark of $38 per barrel, oil production estimate of 1.65 million per day, the Exchange rate of N379/US Dollar Inflation rate of 11.98 per cent Mineral Ratio of 30% and Gross Domestic Product Growth Rate of 3 per cent. The governor said: " In the proposed 2021 Budget, the sum of Fifty-Seven Billion, Nine Hundred and Ninety-Seven Million, Nine Hundred and Eighty-Nine Thousand, Nine Hundred and Eighty-Two Naira, Sixty-Two Kobo (N57,997,989,982.62) has been earmarked for Recurrent Expenditure of Government. This represents 53% of the total Budget. The Recurrent Revenue will be expended on Personnel Cost, Overhead Cost, Grants to Parastatals and Consolidated Revenue Fund Charges. ALSO READ: Ndigbo group commends Afenifere, Ohanaeze Ndigbo "The completion of all on-going projects as well as the commencement of new essential ones shall be vigorously pursued. It is in this regard that we are proposing an amount of Fifty-One Billion, Six Hundred and Six-Eight Million, Three Hundred and Eighty-Six Thousand, Seven Hundred and Thirty-Nine Naira, Ninety-Nine Kobo (N51,668,386,739.99) as Capital Expenditure in the Draft 2021Budget. This represents 47% of the entire 2021 Budget." Fayemi revealed that the administration would focus more on employment and social security for the people with the sole aim of lifting more residents of the state from poverty. According to him, the administration in the year 2020 started and completed many laudable projects including the model schools built in honour of four illustrious sons of the state, adding that the coming year would witness a recovery of the economy from the effect of the coronavirus pandemic. He explained that the 2021 budget would capture the full implementation of the consequential adjustment of the minimum wage to all senior workers in the state. "Mr Speaker, this Administration places a high premium on the welfare of its workers. We have kept faith with our electioneering promise of prompt payment of Salaries. We are also committed to clearing backlogs of outstanding salaries and other emoluments. We commenced the implementation of the new minimum wage to officers on Grade Levels 01-07 in 2020. While we were on the verge of concluding negotiation to commence the full implementation of the Consequential Adjustment of the new Minimum Wage for other Officers on Grade Level 08 and above, the sudden outbreak of the pandemic halted the process. Provision has been made in the 2021 Budget to implement the new minimum wage," he said. To enhance food security and productivity in the agriculture sector, he said his administration would focus in the sector and has signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with different investors in a bid to transform the sector in the coming year. "To further enhance productivity and service delivery, the defunct Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has been bifurcated into the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and the Bureau of Rural and Community Development," the governor added. NIGERIAN TRIBUNE