Federal Government has announced that it is planning to borrow $750 million from the World bank for some states to stimulate local economies in Nigeria.
Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed made this disclosure in Abuja on Friday at the inauguration ceremony of the Federal Steering Committees of the Nigeria COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (N-CARES).
She said that the administration was determined to alleviate the impacts of the COVID-19 on low-income earners who form the bulk of the Nigerian population.
Zainab expressed;
The diverse and severe impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to be felt across the world with significant consequences on informal businesses, and households that survive on daily income and the peasant farmers who depend on their farm produce to survive.
This key population make up over 60% of our entire population in Nigeria therefore, the need to cushion the effects of the pandemic on the vulnerable sectors through the provision of palliatives and stimulus package.
The Minister stressed;
As part of windows of opportunity to mitigate the effect of Covid-19, the Federal Government is in the process of accessing a World Bank loan of $750 million on behalf of the states to stimulate the local economy and support vulnerable household’s consumption.
In addition, Ahmed said that the administration would take every necessary step to ensure that the nation’s economy did not remain in recession because of its consequences.
According to her;
Nigeria as the biggest economy in Africa cannot afford to remain in recession; the survival of over 200 million population is germane to all we do and we must address the concerns of the majority of our populace.
