The Ebonyi State Government has said it accorded priority to health, agriculture, infrastructure and education in its 2020 revised budget because of their critical intervention importance in tackling the immediate and after effect of COVID-19.
The explanation was given by the State Commissioner for Finance and Economic Development, Orlando Nweze, on Friday in Abakaliki, while presenting the budget breakdown to newsmen.
According to Nweze, the Ministry of Works and Transport got the largest allocation of the fiscal estimate with N11.35 billion, representing 10.2 per cent, of the 2020 approved budget.
Following closely was the Ministry of Health with N3.561 billion, indicating 15.7 per cent, while the Ministry of Agriculture received N4.93 billion .
The Ministry of Infrastructure and Concession got N1.12 billion; Lands, N26.9 million; while the Ministry of Human Capital development was allotted N951 million.
Nweze further explained that completion and equipping of the Ebonyi State University Teaching hospital and the new College of Medicine sited in Uburu were considered in the fiscal allocation to both health and education.
He added that the State has done a lot and still continuing until the best was achieved in the area of equipping the healthcare centres across the State, while the expected innovation in the State schools at all levels owing to the challenges posed by the pandemic were duly noted in allocating funds to the sector.
Meanwhile, on sectoral allocations to Ministries, Departments and Agencies, Nweze announced that the Ebonyi State Housing Development Corporation got the lowest recurrent allocation of only N429,000, while the lowest for capital allocation was the Enugu Liaison Office of the State, which got N4 million only.
He noted that the major areas of source of fund in the projection were statutory allocation from the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee, Value Added Tax, Internally Generated Revenue and internal and external grants, among others.
He emphasised that the government has abolished foreign trips and trainings as well as reduced local trips to the point of necessity as a means of conserving funds to drive the budget.
On the revised summary of overhead cost, capital expenditure and their contingencies, Nweze further explained: “Personnel cost has a reduction of 14.21 per cent resulting to a sum of N15.577 billion.
“Earlier, personnel cost was N18.15 billion.
“Basically we have two increased overhead cost in some levels and what we came up with is a difference of 23.45 per cent.
“Earlier on we had N22.922 billion while currently on the revised budget, we have N28.293 billion.
“On the recurrent contingency, we have a very significant reduction from N5 billion to N1 billion amounting to 80 per cent reduction.
“On the Capital expenditure, there was a 33 per cent reduction from N127.056 billion to N35.132 billion.
“Capital contingency was reduced at the rate of 60 per cent, from N5 billion to N2 billion.
“There were lots of considerations that were taken, while doing this review, but all were centred on religious response to COVID-19 challenges on the economy and the recovery plans that we have designed for the economy of the State.
“Largely, the COVID-19 challenges as it were, touches basically and largely the health sector and, of course, the education sector.
“We have looked at the personnel cost of our healthcare workers and we obviously expect that we’ll have lots more activities within that area of healthcare: increase in the number of allowances paid to healthcare workers based on the challenges of the pandemic.
“Also, there are lots we are doing and we are still continuing until we get the best in the area of equipping our healthcare centres.
“On the MDA that is getting the lowest allocation, the Ebonyi State Housing Development Corporation is getting the lowest of N429,000 for recurrent and for capital, Enugu Liaison Office is getting the lowest of N1 million.”
While introducing the event, the State Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Uchenna Orji, said the present administration under Governor David Umahi has left no stone unturned in delivering quality leadership to the people of the State.
Orji maintained that the revised budget was indicative of the fact that the government in spite of the unfortunate pandemic, would continue to deliver in its massive infrastructural drives, agricultural revolution, healthcare delivery, education, empowerment and social well-being of the citizens.
Recall that the 2020 approved budget of N178.366 billion for the State was revised to approximately N132 billion to reflect the economic realities imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
This amounted to about 25.26 per cent reduction.
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