COVID-19: Ekiti govt slashes 2020 budget from N124bn to N91bn 

The Governor Kayode Fayemi-led government of Ekiti has approved a draft supplementary for downward review of the state 2020 budget.

The review had the budget slashed from N124.5 billion to N91.128 billion, with N56,557,958,763.00 for recurrent expenditure and N34,571,037,719.01 for capital expenditure.

The reduction, according to the state was a reduction of the initial budgetary status by a sum of N33 billion

The state government said in a statement by the Information Commissioner, Muyiwa Olumilua on Saturday, that the review was part of measures to respond to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the economy, which had caused a fall in revenue accruing to Ekiti from the Federation Account.

Olumilua, added that the decision was arrived at during a virtual State Executive meeting in Ado Ekiti, on Friday.

“The Personnel costs remain at 100 per cent, overheads cost would be cut by 50 and grants to parastatals would drop by 20 percents,” the statement further revealed.

According to Olumilua, the council also approved the operation of an Independent Power Plant (IPP) to reduce costs being incurred by government by a sum of N276 million yearly and ensure 24 hours power supply to Ekiti State Government House, Governor’s Office, State Secretariat, Ekiti State Specialist Hospital, Ekiti State University and to power the street lights in the state capital.

The power plant, he said, would take off in about nine months

Also approved by the council was a memorandum on the N 2.5 billion credit support facility for the medical Sector in Ekiti State to be accessed via the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Credit Support Intervention for Health Care sector.

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It ssid N2bn would be expended on financing the State’s Health Care facilities, and acquisition of medical equipment, while N500m is for the purchase of medical consumables, drugs, and other expenditure of the state medical facilities.

The council equally approved the sum of N28, 928,000 for the procurement of laboratory equipment for the Ekiti State College of Agriculture and Technology, Isan-Ekiti, Ekiti State.

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