Governor Bello Matawalle of Zamfara State has presented a N188.87 billion Appropriation Bill before the State House of Assembly for the 2023 fiscal year.
Presenting the proposal on the floor of the State House of Assembly, Matawalle said the budget was designed to enable his administration to adequately mobilise resources to fully contain the ravaging insecurity bedevilling the state.
According to him, the proposed 2023 budget is anchored on multiple grant resources in order to make it fiscally realisable, coherent, and consistent with medium and long-term strategic plan.
He pointed out that the formulation of the budget has come with a lot of challenges of high demand of more than N300 billion from Ministries, Departments and Agencies which are the instruments of implementation of government policies and programmes.
The 2023 proposed budget estimate is made up of N102.56 billion and N86.31 billion as recurrent and capital expenditures respectively.
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Matawalle said with the serious security challenges facing the state, his administration saw the need to remain resolute and committed in the fight against insecurity. To this end, N20 billion was proposed under the security sector, while N10.8 billion was allocated for humanitarian services.
“We have made a substantial allocation for the education subsector to the tune of N21.27 billion. Health sector receives N18.42 billion, while the agricultural sector is allocated the sum of N4.87 billion.
According to the governor, in addition to the completion of the ongoing projects, the administration will undertake a number of important projects in the 2023 fiscal year to the tune of N8.3 billion, including the provision of relief materials for victims of banditry, flood and other disasters.
He also earmarked N4 billion for the completion of Gusau International Airport, while the construction of an ultra-modern stadium and hotel in Gusau, the state capital is expected to gulp N5 billion. The joint UBEB/UNICEF Interventions will receive the sum of N4.5 billion.
Other projects to be executed in the 2023 fiscal year are the construction of Tsafe-Yankuzo road (N2 billion), completion of ongoing township roads and construction of new urban roads (N2 billion), and the Food security Grants to farmers (N1.5 billion).
