The House of Representatives on Wednesday approved the Niger Delta Development Commission’s (NDDC) 2024 budget proposal, totaling N1.91 trillion.
During the plenary session on Wednesday, deliberations on the report from the Committee on NDDC, chaired by Rep. Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu, led to the House’s approval of the NDDC budget.
Earlier in July, while appearing before the House Committee on NDDC to defend the commission’s 2024 budget, NDDC Managing Director, Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, revealed that the commission plans to secure loans totaling N1 trillion to finance its proposed expenditures.
He said: “We have strategically made provisions towards diversifying our sources of funding, as we intend to source an aggregate sum of N1 trillion to fund ongoing legacy projects of the commission in 2024.”
The sum will be sourced from development and commercial banks, according to Ogbuku, who emphasized that “investing in critical infrastructure is a crucial aspect of our financial strategy, as outlined in the 2024 budget proposals.”
In order to justify the necessity of approving the budget, Ibori-Suenu provided a detailed breakdown of the proposed expenditures and funding sources.
He stated: “We urge the House to consider the report of the Committee on NDDC on the issue from the Statutory Revenue Fund of the Niger Delta Development Commission on the total sum of N1.911tn, out of which the sum of N38.55bn is for personnel expenditure, while the sum of N29.25bn is only for overhead expenditure.
“N8.79 bn only is for internal capital expenditure; the sum of N835.22 bn only is for development projects; and the sum of N1tn only is for legacy projects funded by borrowing for the year ending April 30, 2025.”
According to the budget breakdown, a total of N1.84 trillion will be allocated to development projects in the commission’s head office and across the nine states of Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Imo, Ondo, and Rivers.
Staff welfare gulps N531.78 billion, severance benefits N2.3 billion, medical insurance N92 billion, and staff housing scheme N800.52 billion.
Others include promotion arrears of N1.7bn, a voluntary retirement benefit scheme of N1.8bn, pensions of N750m, and recruitment services of N825.54m, among others.
President Bola Tinubu recently approved the NDDC’s request for an additional N1 trillion loan to fund various developmental projects in the 2024 fiscal year.
At a Niger Delta Stakeholders Summit held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, last week, Tinubu, represented by Senate President Godswil Akpabio, reaffirmed his administration’s dedication to achieving sustainable development in the oil-rich Niger Delta region, pledging to drive meaningful growth and progress in the area.
Akpabio was quoted as saying on behalf of the Commander-in-Chief: “Mr. President is very committed to ensuring the development of the Niger Delta. The Bayelsa-Rivers-Akwa Ibom Road, called East-West Road, will be tackled.
“The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road started by the President will not only start from Lagos; Mr. President has also agreed that it must also take root from the Niger Delta simultaneously, and then it will get up with the one in Lagos.
“The Niger Delta Development Commission has never had the kind of budget that they are having in 2024.
“The President has approved that they can go ahead and get a soft loan of N1tn to complete all the other projects that they have in mind to bring quick development to this region.
“So the MD of NDDC is no longer going to lack funds; it is going to be an issue of commitment.
“We will not have people from Abuja coming here to stay in the hotel and requesting to be in NDDC to collect money and take it back to other states of the federation. We are going to spend the money of NDDC right here in the Niger Delta region.”
After the committee’s recommendations were approved, the next step is for the House Committee on Rules and Business to prepare it for a third reading, paving the way for a final vote and passage of the bill.
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