TheCable

President Muhammadu Buhari has raised the 2022 appropriation bill by N2.47 trillion, bringing the total for the fiscal year to N16.45 trillion.

In July, the federal executive council (FEC) had approved N13.98 trillion for the proposed 2022 budget sum.

The president said this in a revised Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) sent to the national assembly on Tuesday.

In the letter read by Ovie Omo-Agege, deputy senate president, Buhari explained that the needed adjustments were important to reflect “the new fiscal terms in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA)”.

“The PIA establishes a progressive fiscal framework aimed at encouraging investment in the Nigerian petroleum industry,” the president said.

“This significantly alters the oil and gas fiscal terms and has necessitated changes in the 2022-2024 Medium Term Fiscal Framework.”

Buhari added that the increase in total sum for the 2022 fiscal year was because N100 billion has been voted for the conduct of the 2023 general poll, amongst other necessities.

“The increase in expenditure is due to; N100 billion additional provision to INEC, to cater for the 2023 general election,” he added.

“The provision of N54 pillion to NASENI, which represents 1 percent FGN share of federation account.

“Additional provision of N510 billion in the Service Wide Votes to cater for National poverty reduction with growth strategy (N300 billion), Police Operations Fund (N50 billion), Hazard Allowance for Health Workers (N50 billion), Public Service Wage Adjustments (additional N80 billion), and MDAs’ Electricity Bills Debt (additional N37 billion).

“Additional capital provision of N1.70 trillion, attributed to projected increases in the budget.”

Buhari also projected a decline in net oil and gas revenue by N5.42 billion.

The president will present the 2022 budget to a joint session of the national assembly on Thursday.