2020 budget: Lagos targets N73.8bn monthly IGR

 IBRAHIM QUADRI

Lagos State Government has projected the sum of N886.041billion as its Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) for the financing of 2020 budget estimate.

The proposed annual IGR of N886.041billion represented N73.8billion monthly revenue.

This was disclosed by the State Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Mr. Sam Egube at Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre, Alausa Ikeja.

The total budget size signed by the State Governor on 31st December 2019 was ₦1.168trillion.

This, according to the Commissioner, would be funded from “a total revenue estimate of ₦1.071trillion, comprising the Internally Generated Revenue (TIGR) of N886.041billion, Capital Receipts, N232.29billion and Federal Transfer of  N184.988billion

Egube disclosed that “included in the Capital Receipt is a brought forward balance of N175bn, that comprise of proceeds from Y2019 Loan and Bond issuance of ₦100bn & ₦75bn respectively. This balance gives the administration a significant head-start in the implementation of major capital projects this year.

“The deficit of ₦97.533billion is projected to be funded by a combination of internal and external loans.

The Recurrent expenditure will N457.529bn while Capital expenditure of N711.03billion. The Capital to Recurrent ratio is 61:39

The recurrent expenditure is broken down as Total Personnel Costs N167.907bn, Total Overhead Costs N249.930billion and Debt charges N39.692billion.

The Commissioner also disclosed that, “a significant percentage of the projected TIGR of N500bn is expected to be contributed by LIRS. We shall achieve this by expanding the tax net through the deployment of technology, amongst other initiatives,

“On the sectoral allocations, the sum of N117.248bn (against the sum of N31.673bn expended by November Y2019) is provided for the maintenance of roads and other infrastructures within the State.

“On infrastructure along the coastline, the sum of N11.288billion has been earmarked to enhance the coastal infrastructure in order to curb the ocean surge and protect lives and properties.

“Traffic Management/Transportation got ₦44.510bn (against Y2019 actual of N17.590bn) was budgeted under the Transportation family for the following projects: Blue and Red rail lines; Junction improvement all around the state; completion of trailer parks in the State; amongst others.

“Education got the lion share with total sum of ₦136.100billion. This is higher by N70.407bn than the Y2019 provision of N65.693billion.

According to Ogube, the increase in the education provision was “designed to cater for the underlisted projects/programmes amongst others: “construction/rehabilitation of schools (300 schools would be renovated in Y2020. This is the first phase of the school rehabilitation programme); Provision of furniture for both primary and secondary schools, provision of equipment for science laboratories and Eko-Excel Project to improve learning outcomes using technology in early education.

On Science and Technology, “the sum of ₦10.629bn is provisioned for building & upgrading of IT Infrastructure Statewide, e-GIS Land automation system, Single Billing system and ease of tax payment, Levies and Other Revenue enhancement initiatives.

He explained that “the Smart City project is targeted at deploying technology to enhance security in the State and will also enhance our revenue generating efforts, adding “The administration will deliver a 3000km metro-broadband fiber infrastructure through a PPP initiative.”

For Health, a total sum of N111.775bn (as against a total sum of N53.141bn in Y2019) was provided for the continuous upgrading/renovation of health facilities and completion of on-going healthcare infrastructure, including Maternal and Child Care Centers (MCCs); and the health insurance scheme.

On Environment, “a total sum of ₦66.586billion was earmarked for this sector in Y2020, out of which a sum of ₦11.917billion (as against Y2019 approved budget of N2.652billion) is meant for construction/upgrading/maintenance of drainage channels (De-flooding Programmes) and procurement of specialized equipment for flood abatement purposes, while the sum of ₦29.343billion has also been provided for LAWMA for waste management and collection in the state.

“₦10.750billion proposed for Advancement of Adiyan waterworks (phase II) and Rehabilitation of mini waterworks all over the State, including improvement of water pipelines and reticulation and procurement of water chemicals, has also been provisioned in the Y2020 budget.

Tourism got the sum of ₦7.481billion for the Development of Heritage Centre for Leadership (Lugard House), upgrade of National Museum, Global Citizens Conference, and Construction of other Tourism facilities in Lagos.

Sports Development got ₦7.740bn for the completion of on-going renovation work on Mobolaji Johnson stadium (formerly Onikan stadium), renovation of Teslim Balogun stadium, construction of community youth recreation centers across the state.

The total allocation to the Housing and Community Amenities is ₦48.559bn, Agriculture and Food Security got the sum of ₦3.926bn, Wealth Creation and Employment had ₦8.403billion.

A total sum of ₦2.920billion has been earmarked for various initiatives and empowerment programmes for the women.

Youth and Social Development got the sum of ₦3.716bn for the construction/completion of elderly care centres in Ikorodu, Epe, Badagry, Alimosho and Lagos Island. Upkeep, equipping / furnishing and maintenance of government owned youth hostel and centres across the state,

On Security and Governance, the sum of ₦39.265billion was allocated for the support of Security services especially in the areas of vehicles, security gadgets and logistics.

Egube explained Y2020 Budget “reflects this administration’s goals to enhance development across all sectors of the economy in line with the “T.H.E.M.E.S” development agenda;

The objectives of the budget according to the Commissioner include: “To Attract private sector investments by creating an enabling environment; Aggressively develop, upgrade and maintain our Infrastructure;

“Invest in human capital development, i.e. education and healthcare; Facilitate sustainable social investment and enterprise; Improve capacity to collect due revenues as efficiently as possible;

“Improve civic engagements and participation in governance, leveraging technology; Build impactful partnerships with the Federal Government, other States and Local governments, development partners and civil society and Improve the quality of the environment and our public spaces generally.”

While reviewing the Y2019 bidget, Egube recalled that the “Appropriation Law was signed on June 3, 2019, by Mr. Governor. As you are all aware, this administration inherited a prepared and partly implemented budget, but we were able to manage it judiciously in a transparent manner which improved the performance significantly through the reordering exercise approved by the Lagos State House of Assembly.

“The reordering exercise was designed to align with the THEMES agenda and position the budget for better performance. The Revised budget size was ₦873.532bn with a Total Revenue of ₦620.532bn. The budget recorded an overall performance of ₦583.733bn (73%) as at 30th November 2019,” he said.

The 2020 budget according to the Commissioner represented “widely held consultations across the three senatorial districts, in addition to taking memoranda and feedback from stakeholders hosted by Honorable Members of the House of Assembly within their respective constituencies”.

For a better society