The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has granted its approval for a $3.45 billion loan application from the World Bank to finance five specific initiatives.
Mr. Wale Edun, who serves as the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, made this announcement following the FEC meeting held in Abuja on Monday, October 23. He revealed that the council had given the green light to the loan request during the State House meeting, and the Federal Government is set to receive the $3.5 billion loan, characterized by “zero-interest.”
Edun further explained that the loan’s repayment term spans 40 years, with a 10-year moratorium, signifying that repayment would commence from the year 2033.
He shared with State House Correspondents, “Today at the Federal Executive Council, I presented five memos which were gracefully approved by the Council. They had to do with concessional and, in many cases, zero-interest financing by the World Bank and the International Development Association, which is the very concessional financing arm.”
“The approved projects encompassed those in the power sector and the renewable energy sector. There was also funding allocated to states for resource mobilization programs to boost their internally-generated revenue. Furthermore, a project aimed at empowering and educating adolescent girls was given the green light, and finally, the fifth financing approved pertained to a project for women.”
“So, in total, these were five loans amounting to $3.45 billion. These loans have an extended tenure, generally around 40 years, with a moratorium of approximately 10 years and, in certain cases, very low interest rates or even zero interest. However, nominal fees may be associated with these loans,” he added.
During the briefing, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu, also disclosed that FEC had sanctioned the establishment of a Humanitarian and Poverty Alleviation Trust Fund. This fund is designed to facilitate the Federal Government’s swift response to humanitarian crises within Nigeria, with the aspiration of raising a minimum of $5 billion annually for its operation.
