Buhari Approves Withdrawal Of N55billion From Nigeria’s Sovereign Wealth Fund To Aid The Fight Against Coronavirus

April 6, 2020 Benedict Agoro Metro 90

President Muhamadu Buhari has approved the withdrawal of $150m (N55bn) from the Sovereign Wealth Fund for distribution to the three tiers of government.

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, disclosed this on Monday, in Abuja during a media briefing on the fiscal policy measures to tackle the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the economy.
She said the amount would be withdrawn from the stabilisation fund component of the Sovereign Wealth Fund.
Zainab said the need to withdraw the amount was to cushion the negative impact of the drop in revenue on the federation account.
She said, for instance, that since January, revenue inflow into the account has been on a decline – a situation that has affected the amount distributed to the three tiers of government by the Federation Account Allocation Committee.
The finance minister also said the government would be approaching international finance institutions such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, African Development Bank among others to seek an additional fund to tackle the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Nigeria.
Buhari had last month set up a Special Ministerial Task Force to seek ways and advise on the general economic outlook, stimulus plans, and packages to save the Nigerian economy.

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