MONEY MARKET Elections can’t stop capital budget implementation –Adeosun
The Federal Government’s capital budget will be strictly deployed to fund infrastructural projects across the country, particularly the completion of ongoing ones, the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, has said.
The government, she added, would retain the capital budget despite the forthcoming elections in the country.
The minister made these known on Friday in Abuja while representing the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, at a lecture delivered to the National Defence College (NDC) Course 26 participants.
Responding to an enquiry by one of the participants on the use of capital budget for the general elections, Adeosun maintained that the present administration would not engage in the diversion of capital project funds for the polls.
The minister said, “The administration remains committed to infrastructure spending at the high levels of the past two years and the completion of major ongoing projects.”
She further reiterated the commitment of the administration to its programme of transformation, jobs and wealth creation across the country.
President Muhammadu Buhari had on November 7, 2017 presented a budget of N8.612 trillion to the National Assembly, with focus on massive infrastructure development which includes: key strategic roads, rail and power projects, among others.
Earlier at the National Defence College, the finance minister had delivered the vice president’s lecture to the Course 26 participants titled ‘Economic Dimensions of National Security: The Nigerian Experience’.
In the speech, Vice President Osinbajo said improvement in economic security was vital to Nigeria’s economic growth, human security improvement, and realisation of national defence and security requirements.
Osinbajo was upbeat about Nigeria’s outlook for 2018, noting that the Federal Government expects the economy to grow by 3.5 per cent, which is 1.4 per cent more than the International Monetary Fund’s projection of 2.1 per cent for the country.
“The inflation projection of 15.74% by end of 2017 was achieved and there is good reason to believe that the EGRP target of 12.42% by the end of 2018 can be achieved,” he stated.