Finance Minister, Ahmed Resumes, Warns Against Fiscal Crisis

FROM COBHAM NSA, ABUJA – Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, has warned that Nigeria cannot afford any slide into fiscal crisis, insisting that all efforts must be geared towards successful delivery of Federal Government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP).

According to her, despite improved revenue performance in the last eight quarters, the growth remains fragile because the revenue figures are still 55 per cent lower than the budget proposals.

Addressing senior management and staff of the Finance Ministry, shortly after being sworn-in by President Muhammad Buhari in Abuja, Mrs Ahmed said all hands must be on deck to ensure the country avoids any fiscal crisis going forward.

The Minister, who admitted that it is not the best of times for the country in terms of revenue accruals into government coffers, said; “As you know our nation is facing a near fiscal crisis, and it is up to us to make sure that it is arrested and ensure that we don’t slip into a crisis.

“We have been growing in eight consecutive quarters, but it is a growth that is still fragile. Our revenues have grown, but they are still 55 per cent from what we have budgeted.”

She further stated that aside its many statutory financial obligations, including payment of workers’ salaries that undoubtedly will go up with the new N30,000 minimum wage, “We have to pay debts and we also need to operate on a day-to-day basis, and we need to do capital projects for the sustained growth of our economy.”

Also noting that the Ministry’s workload now has an expanded scope following the President’s decision to re-match it with the Ministry of Budget and National Planning, the Minister urged the staff to redouble their efforts in the task of meeting set targets and goals of the administration’s Next Level agenda.

“The President has just doubled our assignment. We got this assignment because of the quality of work that we have produced. Ministry of finance has one of the best cerebral civil servants that we have today.

“That we have been re-matched with the ministry of budget and national planning, is also a very weighty responsibility that has been given to us.”

On her second coming to the Ministry, Mrs Ahmed said; “The President has brought me back here so that we can continue the implementation of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), and the other initiatives that we collectively started together.

“We have to increase revenues; if not our country will slip into fiscal crisis.”

The Minister, who also promised robust engagements among stakeholders to drive the nation’s economic growth, said the Budget and National Planning segment will be fully integrated, adding; “Where there are gaps, we will bridge them, and we will make some changes to ensure that we work better together.”

In his remarks, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, Dr Mahmoud Isa-Dutse, assured Mrs Ahmed of the management and staff support and cooperation towards ensuring successful delivery of the mandate given to her by the President.

Noting that the responsibilities on the Finance Minister now are quite huge given the expanded scope of assignment to cover budget and national planning, Dr Isa-Dutse said the task would be done dutifully and diligently to achieve the expected results.