The federal government has released a State by State breakdown of another tranche of Paris Club refund of over-deductions on Paris Club, London Club Loans and Multilateral debts on the accounts of States and Local Governments from 1995-2002.
A statement from the federal ministry of finance said these payments which totalled N243, 795,465,195.20 “were made to the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory upon the approval of the President on May 4, 2017.”
Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, Kano and Rivers states received the largest disbursements of N10 billion each.
This second tranche of Paris Club refunds is a “partial settlement of long-standing claims by State Governments relating to over-deductions from their Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) allocation for external debt service arising between 1995 and 2002.”
The statement added that Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun explained that these debt service deductions were in respect of the Paris Club, London Club and Multilateral debts of the federal and State governments.
Adeosun noted that “while Nigeria reached a final agreement for debt relief with the Paris Club in October 2005, some States had already been overcharged.”
The funds were released to State Governments as part of the wider efforts to stimulate the economy and were specifically designed to support states in meeting salary and other obligations, thereby alleviating the challenges faced by workers.
The releases the ministry said “were conditional upon a minimum of 75 per cent being applied to the payment of workers’ salaries and pensions for States that owe salaries and pension.”
The Federal Ministry of Finance said it “is reviewing the impact of these releases on the level of arrears owed by State Governments.”
A detailed report is being compiled for presentation to the Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, as part of the process for approval for the release of any subsequent tranches.
The disbursements are contained in the table below:
