The administration of Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State has spent just a little more than it has earned in the past eight years. The state is therefore low on debt, it has emerged.
According to the Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Ben Akabueze, who disclosed this yesterday, in Alausa, Ikeja, the total revenue generated represents 89 percent of the total expenditure by the government. While Lagos generated a total revenue of N2.433 trillion through Federal allocation, Internally Generated Revenue, IGR and others in the last eight years, it has expended over N2.7 trillion in providing infrastructure and other economic needs.
“The total revenue generated by the administration is N2.433 trillion through Federal allocation, Internally Generated Revenue, IGR and others, representing 89 percent of the total expenditure by the government. The aggregate budgetary expenditure in the last eight years by the present administration is N2.749 trillion,” Akabueze said.
“What these translate to is that only 11 percent of the state’s expenditure has been funded from debt. Of course not all the revenue was generated through IGR. Only 59 percent (N1.4 trillion) of the budgetary expenditure was funded through IGR.
“The government through the ministry in the last eight years certified 8, 961 projects/programmes valued at N1.132 trillion.
Akabueze stated that the bulk of the projects were done last year, saying “the sum of N39.675 billion was issued as pre-payment certificates.”
The commissioner noted that the average budget performance over the period stood at 79 percent.
He dispelled claims that the state was operating on loan.
“Average sectoral allocation of the budget from 2008 and 2015 are: General Service; 23.70 percent, Public Order and safety; 3.12 percent, Economic Affairs; 31.58 percent, Environmental protection; 8.56 percent, Housing and community amenities; 9.17 percent, Health; 7.66 percent, Recreation, culture and Religion; 1.5 percent, Education; 14.09 percent and Social protection; 0.60 percent,” he dislcosed.