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Live Update: Buhari presents 2020 budget to National Assembly

President Muhammau Buhari has arrived at the National Assembly to present the 2020 appropriation bill to the joint session of the assembly for approval.

The president came into the Assembly at 2:04pm

2:05pm: National Assembly was taken.

2:07pm: Muslim and Christian prayers were observed.

2:09pm: Senate President, Ahmad Lawan addressing the joint session of the National Assembly.

The Senate President welcomed Buhari and his Vice, Yemi Osinbajo to the Assembly for the budget presentation. He pledged the National Assembly’s support for the president to actualize the next level agenda.

2:18 pm: Buhari begins budget presentation

-Buhari says the nation’s Gross Domestic Product has grown from 1.93 percent in 2018 to 2.02 percent in the first half of 2019.

-He says inflation down from peak of ~18% in Jan 2017 to ~11% by August 2019. External reserves up from $23bn in October 2016 to ~$42bn in Sept 2019.

-Buhari says Capital importation up from $12bn in H1 2018 to $14bn in H1 2019.

-Buhari says the 2018 capital budget implemented till June 2019 and that N294.6 billion released for capital projects under the 2019 budget, as of Sept 30, 2019. “I have directed the Federal Ministry of Finance to release additional N600 billion for capital by the end of 2019.”

-Benchmark Oil Price: $57 Production: 2.18m BPD FX: N305/$

-Proposed Increase of VAT from 5% to 7.5%. He says the 2020 budget based on the new VAT rate. Increased revenues will be used to fund education, health, and infrastructure. VAT Act already exempts Pharma, Educational items and basic commodities. We will expand the exemptions.

Buhari says his government will raise the threshold for VAT registration to N25m turnover per annum, to bring relief to small(est) businesses. He said N8.155 trillion in revenues is estimated in 2020 budget, as The oil sector will rake in N2.64 trillion; Non-oil sector: N1.81 trillion, others: N3.7 trillion.-Buhari says Domiciliary Accounts in foreign missions will be captured in TSA, as well as for GOEs in the 2020 budget.

He adds that the budget for National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has increased from N1.5 billion to N2.5 billion.-Buhari says he had directed the stoppage of salaries for any Nigerian government staff not captured in the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) by end of October 2019.”-He says N2.46 trillion is proposed for capital projects.

Buhari says the main emphasis will be on the completion of as many ongoing projects as possible, instead of starting new ones.-He adds that the goal is for the 2020 Appropriation Act to come into effect on January 1, 2020.

In the budget, the infrastructure Tax Credit Scheme gets a prominent mention: PPP Scheme launched January 2019, which in its ongoing Phase 1 has already attracted N200 billion in private capital into the reconstruction of ~800km of Federal Roads, across all 6 geopolitical zones. More to come…

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