James Sowole in Abeokuta
The Ogun State Governor, Mr. Dapo Abiodun, yesterday presented the 2023 Budget Proposal of N472.26 billion before the State House Assembly.
The proposal christened “Budget of Continued Development and Prosperit” is made of N270.41 billion capital expenditure and N201.84 billion recurrent expenditures.
Specifically, the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure took a lion share of N129.37 billion, representing 27 per cent of the total budget.
Abiodun, while presenting the appropriation bill in the Ogun State House of Assembly at Oke Mosan, Abeokuta, said that the budget would take his administration’s “Building Our Future Together” agenda from the current phase to another one.
The governor noted that his administration would continue to accord priority attention to the completion of ongoing projects, especially those with revenue potentials that could enhance employment generation; projects that are consistent with priorities articulated in the state’s Economic Development Plan and Strategy 2021-2025 as well as projects that aligned with the seven thematic areas contained in the Medium-Term National Development Plan 2021-2025.
He declared that the principal objective of his government in 2023 would be to maintain and enlarge the state economic base by harnessing economic opportunities in the outer years of the current administration.
He said that the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure has the largest share of the proposed 2023 budget because his administration has planned to implement schemes for power generation to improve and guarantee electricity supply to major cities, business clusters and estates; development of a dry port at Kajola to leverage on the existing rail network; rehabilitation, reconstruction and maintenance of roads across the state; completion of the Agro-Cargo Airport; procurement and installation of transformers state-wide; construction of pilot rural road of 13.1km at Alapako-Oni and Mosa Junction; improvement and upgrading of other rural roads among other infrastructural projects.
According to the governor, personnel cost, social contribution and social benefits, public debt charge and overhead cost would gulp N79.47 billion, N21.12 billion, N39.90 billion and N61.35 billion, respectively in the 2023 proposed budget.
Abiodun said that the state is expected to generate an estimated revenue of N90 billion internally through the OGIRS, N120.25 billion from other Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), all totaling N210.25 billion.
He noted that the state would achieve an IGR to GDP ratio of 3.7 per cent, he added that the state is expected to receive a sum of N92 billion from the statutory allocation from the federal government, while N128.37 billion is expected as capital receipts comprising of internal and external loans as well as grants and aids in 2023.
He said: “The 2023 budget proposals manifest the issues we confront as well as the necessary steps to overcome them in a sustainable manner.
“The expenditure policy of government in 2023 is designed to achieve the strategic objectives of the Ogun State Economic Development Plan and Strategy 2021-2025, including fiscal sustainability; human development; food security; improved business environment; energy sufficiency; improving transport infrastructure; and, promoting industrialization focusing on Small and Medium Scale Enterprises.
“We will continue to focus our public spending mix towards a capital expenditure that is higher than that of recurrent expenditure. We are convinced that increased investment in capital expenditure is our secured route to sustainable economic growth and development as a state.
“Against the backdrop of the challenging global and domestic economic environment, it is imperative that we strengthen our macroeconomic environment and address existing challenges as a state. The 2023 appropriation therefore is a ‘Budget of Continued Development and Prosperity’ expected to achieve social cohesion that will continue to focus on equitable socio-economic growth and development state-wide.
“Our internally generated revenue capacity in the comity of states is no longer in doubt. More importantly, this administration’s budget model is revenue driven through the State Medium Term Revenue Strategy.
“In essence we will continue to focus on improving our revenue base. In doing this we will rely on the provisions of the section 23 (1 & 2) of the fiscal responsibility law, 2020 (as amended) with a view to increase the State’s Internally Generated Revenue. This will not only help to enhance the comprehensiveness and transparency, but increase the State’s revenue in due course.”
While saying that the infrastructure investments of his government are people-oriented and transformational with immense multiplier effects on the socio-economic development of the entire state, the governor said that over 80 major roads and others, including federal roads inclusive, totaling 400 kilometres have been constructed, reconstructed or rehabilitated across the state, submitting that “this administration in three years and six months has done more in terms of kilometres of roads than previous administrations in the state.”
Abiodun, however, urged the leadership of the State House of Assembly to ensure that the 2023 budget proposal is thoroughly but expeditiously vetted and returned in earnest for his assent before January 1, 2023, emphasising that the budget contents emanated from the wishes of the Ogun people expressed at different budget town hall meetings.
