Edo State’s Governor Godwin Obaseki, has unveiled a budget proposal of N325.3 billion for the year 2024, marking a slight increase from the 2023 budget of N321.4 billion.
The budget, presented to the Edo House of Assembly on Tuesday, is aptly tagged ‘Budget of Home Run and Finishing Strong’.
The proposed budget is divided into N178 billion for capital expenditure and N146 billion for recurrent expenditure. The governor also outlined the projected revenue for 2024, which stands at N303 billion.
This includes N55 billion in statutory allocations, N38 billion in VAT, N40 billion in capital receipts, N72 billion in internally generated revenue, and N10 billion from grants. Additional funds will be sourced from development financing and financial institutions.
Governor Obaseki explained the allocation of the budget, stating, “A total of 25 per cent of the total budget (N85 billion) would be allocated to areas that would stimulate growth and employment, while 19 percent (N62.8 billion) would be allocated to infrastructure, particularly roads.” Other sectors, such as health, education, building, and social welfare, have also been allocated significant portions of the budget.
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The Speaker of Parliament, Blessing Agbebaku, received the budget proposal and assured that it would be carefully examined to ensure it aligns with the promise to stimulate the economy.
Obaseki said, “The 2024 budget is special to us in the legislative arm, as it is going to be inclusive of our constituency projects to allow us to meet the yearnings and aspirations of our constituents.” He further urged all MDAs to provide the necessary documents to aid the speedy passage of the budget.
Obaseki also added that the revenue estimate for the budget is based on a $65 per barrel benchmark for crude oil, an average daily production of 1.6 million barrels per day, and an increase in internally generated revenue to N72 billion.