The 36 States of the Federation have agreed to reform the finances of State and Local Governments under a Fiscal Sustainability Programme to ensure their long term viability.
This was contained in a statement on Tuesday by the Federal Ministry of Finance.
The reform, it has been agreed, must be implemented by the States for the Federal Government to offer any further assistance to them.
The statement said the 22-point fiscal reform action plan to be implemented by States under the programme mirrors the ongoing public financial management reforms being undertaken by the Federal Government.
The reforms include biometric capture of all civil servants, the establishment of an Efficiency Unit, implementation of Continuous Audit, improvement in Independently Generated Revenue and measures to achieve sustainable debt management.
The reforms, according to the statement, were unanimously agreed on by State Governors during the National Economic Council meeting that was held on May 19.
The Federal Government is said to be developing a financial support structure that will be directly tied to the attainment of agreed fiscal reform milestones.
The ultimate objective of the programme, according to the statement by Festus Akanbi, the spokesperson of the Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, is to ensure that States are set on a path towards fiscal sustainability.