President Bola Tinubu has approved the establishment of Infrastructure Support Fund (ISF) for the 36 States of the Federation as part of measures to cushion the effects of the petrol subsidy removal on the masses.
The approval was disclosed at the monthly meeting of the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), in Abuja.
The Infrastructure Fund will enable states to intervene and invest in the critical areas of transportation, including feeder road improvements.
It will also give them the leverage to invest in agriculture and it’s value chains, health, education, power and water resources, to improve economic competitiveness, create jobs and deliver economic prosperity for Nigerians.
The Committee also resolved to save a portion of the monthly distributable proceeds to minimise the impact of the increased revenues, occasioned by the subsidy removal and exchange rate unification on money supply, as well as inflation and the exchange rate.
A statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Special Duties, Communications & Strategy Dele Alake says out of last month’s distributable revenue of 1.9 trillion Naira, only N907 billion will be distributed among the three tiers of government, while N790 billion will be saved, and the rest will be used for statutory deductions.
According to it, the savings will complement the efforts of the Infrastructure Support Fund (ISF) and other existing and planned fiscal measures, aimed at ensuring that the subsidy removal translates into tangible improvements in the lives and living standards of Nigerians.
The Committee commends President Tinubu for the bold decision to remove the petrol subsidy, and even more importantly, for providing necessary support to states to cushion the effects of the subsidy removal on Nigerians.
Bello Wakili
