Child Development, Health, Education, Defence and Internal security are on the frontburner as President Bola Tinubu presented the 2024 Appropriation Bill before a joint sitting of the National Assembly.
The aggregate expenditure of N27.5 trillion naira is tagged a budget of renewed hope.
This is President Bola Tinubu’s maiden budget presentation to the National Assembly.
The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, set the ball rolling with his welcome remarks.
He applauded the giant strides of Mr. President in the past months and promised a robust Executive-Legislature relationship without compromising the doctrine of separation of powers.
But he also called for the merger of some federal government agencies, especially those with duplicate functions as a way to reduce the cost of governance.
For about one hour, President Bola Tinubu took the legislators through governments projections in the coming year.
$77.96 is projected for a barrel of crude while exchange rate is pegged at N750 to one US Dollar.
Non debt expenditure is N9.92 trillion , Debt Servicing at N8.25 trillion, Capital Expenditure of N8.7 trillion and a Revenue Projection of N9.1 trillion.
President Bola Tinubu said Child Development, Defence and Internal Security, Education, Health and Infrastructure Growth are priorities of his administration.
He appealed that the budget be passed before the end of this year.
For the Speaker, House of Representatives, due diligence is key as lawmakers review the fiscal document
He said a townhall meeting will be organised to increase citizen participation in the budgeting process.
As Mr. President and his entourage took their leave, the two chambers announced their resolve to hit the ground running.
They also agreed to sit on weekends in response to Mr. President’s appeal.
