LAFIA, Nigeria – Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule says the state’s monthly allocation from the Federation Account has increased from about N4.5 billion ($3.4 million) to approximately N16 billion ($12.3 million), following economic reforms introduced by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.
Okay News reports that Sule attributed the increase largely to the removal of the petrol subsidy and foreign exchange reforms, saying the additional revenue has given the state greater room to fund infrastructure and other development projects.
The governor spoke in Lafia while receiving the Renewed Hope Ambassadors National Media Tour, led by presidential adviser on information and strategy Bayo Onanuga. The delegation, comprising media officials and more than 50 senior journalists, is touring federal and state projects across North-Central Nigeria.
Sule said Nasarawa previously received between N3.8 billion ($2.9 million) and N4.5 billion ($3.4 million) monthly from the Federation Account, limiting its ability to finance major capital projects. He said the increased revenue had created fiscal space for investments in roads, education, healthcare, water supply and industrial development.
The governor acknowledged that the subsidy removal and other reforms created significant economic difficulties at the beginning, but praised Tinubu for taking responsibility for what he described as difficult decisions that successive administrations had avoided.
During the tour, the media delegation inspected several projects in Nasarawa, including the completed 16-kilometre Makurdi bypass in Lafia, which links Nasarawa and Benue states, and a 1-megawatt solar farm supplying electricity to the state secretariat.
Other projects visited included the Wing Commander Abdullahi Ibrahim Vocational and Skills Acquisition Centre, Shinge Waterstorm Channel and Kilema Bridge along the Lafia-Doma road.
Onanuga defended the government’s economic policies, saying the removal of the petrol subsidy and unification of multiple foreign exchange rates were reforms that had been repeatedly delayed by previous administrations. He said the measures had freed additional resources for state and local governments.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Public Enlightenment AbulAziz AbdulAziz said the infrastructure projects observed during the tour demonstrated the impact of the Renewed Hope Agenda in Nasarawa and neighbouring Benue State.
Sule expressed optimism that continued implementation of the federal reforms would further improve states’ finances and enable governments to undertake larger development projects.
