₦airaland Forum

Governor Babjide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State has dismisses worries in some quarters over the rising debt of the state, saying that Lagos is still within the standard debt ratio.

Lagos currently stands as the highest debtor among the federating units in Nigeria either foreign or local.

According the National Bureau of Statistics, Lagos State recorded the highest domestic debt in Q1 2024 with N929. 41 billion, followed by Delta with N334.

He said the standard debt ratio is about 40 per cent but Lagos is still around between 28 and 29 per cent.

The standard debt ratio that we are meant to meet standardly is about 40%, today we are less than 30, we are about 29 or 28% of those numbers, so we are not even close to it.

“The standard debt ratio that we are meant to meet standardly is about 40%, today we are less than 30, we are about 29 or 28% of those numbers, so we are not even close to it,” Sanwo-Olu said on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday.

The governor also said that the state has grown its budget exponentially in the last five years when he came in as governor. According to him, Lagos achieves 95 per cent budget performance every year, with this year’s budget already 90 per cent gone.

“If you see what our budget growth has been in the last five year, when we came in, we inherited a budget of about N620 billion, today Lagos State is doing about N2.3 trillion.

“We are probably going to close this year’s budget at about N2.5 trillion. We have tripled the budget of this state and mind you, we year-on-year we are doing about %95 budget performance, this year alone we are well over 90%,” the governor said.

The World Bank has stated that Nigeria must maintain its ongoing economic reforms for the next 10 to 15 years to establish itself as a leading economic power, not only in sub-Saharan Africa but also on the global stage.

These reforms, according to the bank, are crucial for ensuring sustainable growth and development, allowing Nigeria to compete with other emerging economies worldwide.

The Senior Vice President of the World Bank Group, Indermit Gill, gave this advice during the ongoing 30th Nigerian Economic Summit, organised by the Nigerian Economic Summit Group and the Ministry of Budget and National Planning on Monday in Abuja.

The three-day event is themed “Collaborative Action for Growth, Competitiveness, and Stability.”

Nigeria is currently grappling with a high inflation rate of 32.15 per cent, largely driven by the removal of the fuel subsidy, which has increased transportation and production costs.

Additionally, the unification of the foreign exchange market has led to significant fluctuations in currency value, further increasing the cost of goods and services across the country, contributing to a high cost of living.

In his welcome address, Gill said the reforms implemented by the current administration must continue to reverse the loss of N10 trillion enjoyed by the elite through fuel subsidies and multiple foreign exchange rates.

He noted that while implementing these reforms will be challenging, it is essential to persevere.

Gill stated, “Nigeria will need to stay the course of current economic reforms for at least the next 10 to 15 years to transform its economy.”

After being momentarily interrupted by a negative reaction from the audience, he continued, “I don’t know if you are agreeing or disagreeing with me. If these reforms are sustained, Nigeria will transform its economy and become an engine of growth in sub-Saharan Africa.”

“It is very difficult to implement such reforms, but the rewards will be massive if they are maintained,” he added.

Almunjid:
Nigeria as a country, is not cursed, but rather the people within it are. This raises an important question: what are you doing to change your own situation? If the people are the ones who are cursed, then it's up to each individual to take action and work towards reversing that curse. So, what steps are you taking to improve your circumstances and make a positive impact?

Peace!