EXPERTS LAUD LASG ON ECONOMY, BUDGET PERFORMANCE
Lagos State government has been commended for its efforts on the economy and the 78 percent performance of the year 2023 Budget as of September.
Business experts and economists gave the commendation recently at a Round Table organised by the Economic Intelligence Department (EID) of the Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget to review the State Economy in the year 2023 and the outlook for the year 2024, held at the Protea Hotel Select, Central Business District, Ikeja, They expressed the hope that the year 2024 appropriation bill, when passed, would meet expectations.
Speaking at the Round Table, Dr. Ayo Teriba, the Chief Executive of Economic Associates, said by September 2023, which signifies the end of the third quarter, Lagos had achieved a 78 percent performance of its 2023 Budget contrary to the 75 percent performance expected by stakeholders.
According to him, “As of September this year (2023), they have achieved 78 percent performance of the budget. September is the end of the third quarter so you should have achieved 75 percent but Lagos did 78 which is good. This makes the 2024 appropriation bill presented by Mr. Governor to the State House of Assembly credible.”
Dr. Teriba urged the Lagos government through the Economic Intelligence Department to optimise and make collections of its assets for fee-rent-based revenue generation to enhance the Y2024 budget when passed by the House.
President of the Nigerian Economic Society (NES), Prof. Adeola Adenikinju commended the State government for the indicator shown in the proposed bill that almost half of the spending is coming from the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).
Professor Adenikinju said, “The ratio between the Capital Budgets being significantly higher than the recurrent is very good, stating that very few states in the country have that kind of action”. He added that the State boasts of ‘relatively strong institutions that help drive the performance and the economy’.
In his presentation, Dr. Femi Sabiu, a Professor of Economics at the University of Lagos (UNILAG) charged the state government to set its priorities right and focus on realistic sectors, citing the agricultural sector as one the government needs to pay more attention to.
He said, “Every year we budget on agriculture. We make agriculture our priority and yet the land and resources to do this are not available. We need to strike a balance and decide which one is our focus”.
Urging the government to address inflation in the economy, Mr. Babajide Komolafe, Vanguard Economy Editor, said: “The inflation rate for Lagos rose by 9.92 percentage points but for the National, the increase in the inflation rate was just 5.86 percent. Inflation in Lagos as of November stood at 32 percent, that of the National is 27.33, then the question is why the huge disparities?”
Earlier, Mr. Ope George, the State Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, said the gathering is expected to offer insightful analysis, collaborative strategies, actionable recommendations and resilience building.
“We are poised to delve into comprehensive discussions, analyse critical economic indicators, and glean insights from the collective wisdom assembled in this room. The knowledge and expertise each of you brings to the table will undoubtedly contribute to the formulation of robust strategies and policies that will guide us through the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead”, he said.
Recall that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, recently, presented an estimate of #2.2 trillion expenditures to the House of Assembly for the year 2024 christened ‘Budget of Renewal’, proposing increased capital spending across key priority areas in the economic matters sector.
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