Lagos To Borrow N97 Billion To Finance 2020 Budget

The Lagos state government has disclosed its plans to borrow N97 Billion to assist the state in clearing its debt which stands at N39.69 billion.

This was disclosed by the Commissioner for Finance, Rabiu Olowo, who assured that though the state’s debt is high there is no cause for alarm.

A breakdown of the debt showed that the state’s external debt is N4.9 billion, internal debt is N29.7 billion while N5 billion is charges on bonds, making a total of 39.692 billion.

The commissioner said the state government had the capacity to sustain and finance its debt profile adding that the debt sustainability figures of the state are in line with international and local benchmarks.

“Currently, we finished 2019 at 29%, which is below 30% benchmark. Going forward into medium-term by 2021, 2022, debt figure will come down to 25 per cent meaning that we will be able to manage our debts into the future with increasing revenue in the coming years.”

“Our professional position on debt issuance by Lagos State Government, there are two questions when debt is being considered, they are utilization and sustainability figures.

“For debt utilization alone, with fiscal Responsibility Act, 100% of our debts are targeted towards capital projects.

In financing the state’s budget, the government is going to borrow a total of N97 billion with a breakdown of N34 billion external loan and N63 billion internal loan.

He, however, lauded the state saying despite the debt profile, Lagos remains Nigeria’s economic hub and one of the leading economies in Africa.