The National Economic Council (NEC) Thursday reached an agreement with the Federal Government to refund about N350 billion owed states for the construction and maintenance of federal roads across the country.
To facilitate the exercise, the Council directed the Federal Ministry of Works to speed up the verification and harmonisation of the claims so that the Federal Government could raise the money for the payment.
Briefing journalists after its meeting, Governors Theodore Orji of Abia State, Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State, Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State, and Shehu Shema of Katsina said the meeting agreed that the verification was to ensure that states were reimbursed their expenditure on federal roads.
“In the effort towards ensuring better maintenance of roads across the country, the Federal Government has mandated the Federal Ministry of Works to speed up work on the verification and harmonisation of claims on states spending on federal roads to ensure that the states are reimbursed their spending in this regard.
“A special provision is being made by the Federal Government to raise the money for the payment which stands at over N350 billion. To ensure proper maintenance of federal roads, states are encouraged to continue with routine maintenance of such roads provided they comply with new procedures for such intervention,” Orji who spoke on the issue said.
On the power sector reform, Shema said states had been given the nod to work with accredited distribution companies while National Independent Plants (NIPP) would be on completion, adding that privatised, states, Federal Government and the Nigerian Electricity Commission would hold 49 per cent equity after due evaluation of the companies had been carried out.
However, they are not expected to play any management role in the total equity of these companies which would retain the present 11-company structure, while the core investors would enter into a shareholders’ agreement with the federal and state governments.
"The state that desires to establish or build independent electricity distribution networks within the areas of its states not currently served or being served by the distribution companies, is free to do so by obtaining a franchise. This will be subjected to obtaining a licence from NERC without any delay," Shema said.
On agriculture, Nyako said they agreed to deepen cooperation between federal and state governments to boost agriculture which would also include completion of existing dam projects in their joint bid to ensure food security.
In addition, Ondo, Plateau and Adamawa States were asked to submit their agricultural and productivity enhancement plans in order to access funds from Commercial Agricultural Loans Scheme following their presentation.
"Following a comprehensive presentation on Agric Productivity Enhancement Practices jointly made by Adamawa, Ondo and Plateau States, each state has been asked to submit proposals on their comprehensive agric plans to be able to access funding from Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS) administered by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The ministries of Agriculture, Water Resources and CBN are collaborating towards funding the necessary agricultural developments in the states with available funds," Nyako said.
The plan to decentralise the Ministry of Agriculture, Nyako continued, would kick off with the creation of regional state offices in accordance with the promised agricultural reforms expected to engender effective monitoring of agricultural processes in the states.
"Those offices will be on ground to work directly with farmers in implementing agricultural value chains. Other areas of reforms being implemented include public, private sector collaboration in fertiliser procurement and distribution, setting up of marketing corporations, the establishment of agricultural investment framework and transmission of a bill on 40 per cent cassava flour content to ensure compliance," he said.
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