Reps approve Buhari’s $16bn, €1bn loan requests, $125m grant

House of Representatives, yesterday, approved President Muhammadu Buhari’s request for new externally borrowing comprising $16.2 billion and €1.020 billion.

The House also approved a grant component of  the external funding plan amounting to $125  million in the President’s request.

The approval was granted during the consideration of report on the ‘Request for a concurrent approval of donor fund projects under the Federal Government Proposed 2018-2020 External Borrowing (Rolling) Plan No. 2 and Addendum to the request for concurrent approval of Multilateral Fund Projects under the 2018-2021 Federal Government External Borrowing (Rolling) Plan’ by the House on Committee of Supply.

Chairman of the Committee on Aids, Loans and Debt Management, Hon. Ahmed Dayyabu Safana, who presented the report said that the World Bank, African Development Bank, and the French Development Agency (AFD) were among the funding agencies. He said that from the total sum of $16.230 billion, World Bank would provide  $3,529,300,000; China EXIM Bank –  $5,078,441,252; Industrial & Commercial Bank of China –  $3,902,267,260; China Development Bank –  $2,893,693,930; European ECA/KFW/IPEX/AFC – $190,255,276; Standard Chartered Bank/Sinocure – $62,120,000 while Africa Development Bank (AFDB) is to provide $698,500,000.

Similarly, the Chairman said that from the total sum of €1.020 billion, French Development Agency (AFD) would provide €345,000,000; European Investment Bank – €175,000,000 while International Capital Market would also provide €500,000,000.

The loan chedule of projects indicated that the Nigeria Electrification Project – Off Grid would receive $350,000,000 from World Bank and $200 million from AfDB; 330 KV DC North Core Interconnection of Nigeria/Niger-Benin/Togo-Burkina Faso is to gulp $29,300,000 from World Bank; Nigeria Transmission Expansion Project (NTEP-1) is to receive $210 million from Africa Development Bank (AfDB); while Northern Corridor Transmission Project is to gulp €245 million from French Development Agency (AFD).

From the total external loan approved for the Digital Economy, the National Identity Management Commission project would get  $100  million from French Development Agency.

Also, from the sum of  $500  million approved for the industrial sector, Federal Government is expected to raise Sovereign Guarantee for the Issuance of Eurobond as collateral to enable Bank of Industry to fund its Projects worth  $500  million but not more than €750,000,000 International Capital Market.

From total loan of $12.065 billion proposed for transportation sector, Federal Ministry of Transportation is to receive  $3,141,984,852  from China EXIM Bank to fund the Nigerian Coastal Railway Project: Lagos-Benin City Segment;  $1,711,336,400  from China Exim Bank to fund Nigerian Coastal Railway Project: Benin-Onitsha including Onitsha Railway Bridge (Branch);  $2,893,693,930  from China Development Bank to fund Nigerian Coastal Railway Project: Benin City-Warri – Yenegoa -Port Harcourt Segment;  $3,902,267,260  from Industrial and Commercial Bank of China to fund Central Line Project: Abuja – Baro – Itakpe – Ajaokuta segment; $25,120,000 FROM China EXIM Bank TO FUND Lagos-Ibadan Railway Modernization Project Construction of the Branch Line (Apapa-Tin Can Island Port) and $190,255,276 from European ECA/KWF/IPEX/AFC to fund Kano-Maradi SGR with Branch to Dutse.

Meanwhile, the sum of $1.789 billion proposed for the Financial and National Planning sector, Nigeria Power Sector Recovery Performance-Based Program is to gulp  $750  million from World Bank and $288.500 million from African Development Bank to fund COVID-19 Response Support Program (C19RSP).