The Nigerian Senate has approved fresh external loans of $1.5 billion and €995 millio for the federal government and states in the country.
The red chambers approved the foreign loans after considering the report of its committee on local and foreign debts during Wednesday’s plenary session.
Clifford Ordia, chairman of the committee, told the lawmakers that the panel had considered the loan request and was recommending its approval.
According to him, “The ministry is seriously in bilateral partnership with Brazil where 300 tractors are to be bought and imported for the project this year once the loan is approved….all these plans of ours, are geared towards food security in the country the population of which will be 400 million in about 40 years from now.”
“But the committee had faulted his presentation, arguing that “beautiful plans are different from practical implementation.”
The €995 million loan is meant for agricultural mechanisation across the 774 LGAs while the $1.5 billion loan will be used to fund critical infrastructure in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic across the 36 states and the federal capital territory.
The loan is to be facilitated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank, African Development Bank Group (AFDB), and Export/Import Bank of Brazil.
The lawmakers gave their nod for the loan request despite that Nigeria is struggling under the weight of increasing public debt stock which stood at N32.22 trillion as of September 30, 2020.
