NG-CARES: FG spends N14.9b on 160,572 beneficiaries in six northern states

Federal Government, through its programme, Nigeria COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES), has said it spent N14.9 billion on 160,572 beneficiaries in six northern states.

The fund was part of a $750 million loan from the World Bank in 2021-2023. Each state was allocated $20 million, while the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and NG-CARES received $15 million, respectively.

Minister of State for Budget and Economic Planning, Clem Ikanade Agba, disclosed this, yesterday, during the Ministerial Town Hall Meeting organised for Bauchi, Gombe, Katsina, Jigawa, Kano and Plateau states.

The event was designed to assess success of the initiative among beneficiaries and officials.

Agba noted that hundreds of thousands of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) benefited from government’s effort to cushion the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said: “We all recall that the COVID-19 pandemic, which ravaged many economies in the world, had devastating consequences on the livelihoods of poor and vulnerable individuals, formal and informal businesses, especially micro and small businesses and peasant farmers, who rely on daily subsistence income to survive.

“To mitigate adverse impacts of the pandemic and lay solid foundation for a robust economic recovery, the Federal Government enunciated several policy measures under the Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP), which was launched by President, Muhammad Buhari in July.

“The ESP laid out policy measures to mobilise funds and other resources to maintain macro-economic stability, stimulate oil and non-oil government revenues and reduce non-essential spending.”

He added: “In furtherance of government’s effort to scale up its programme under the social protection agenda and respond swiftly and appropriately to challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Government accessed a World Bank concessional loan in the sum of $750 million, on behalf of the 36 states and FCT, to stimulate the local economy and increase households consumption among the poor and vulnerable segment of the society.”