Fed Govt set to deploy resources to tackle unemployment and poverty
… FAAC shares N966.110bn for July
By Patience Ikpeme
The federal government says it wants to tackle unemployment and poverty in the country head on.
As a first step, the federal government has expressed willingness to collaborate with both state and local governments to deploy resources to this course.
Minister of Finance and the Co-ordinating Minister of the Economy Mr. Wale Edun made this known in Abuja yesterday during the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) meeting.
Edun when addressing FAAC members said there is need “to mobilise resources to increase employment and reduce poverty.
He then advised that “there should be discipline in money supply to control inflation in the nation’s economy”.
In his appeal to the states, Edun is asking for their cooperation and collaboration in implementing policies and programmes aimed at achieving the goals of creating more jobs and drastically reducing poverty.
Though the finance minister did not elaborate on how he plans to mobilise resources to actualise these goals, it could involve pooling resources, sharing expertise, and coordinating efforts to address the root causes of unemployment and poverty across the country.
By working together in this way, the federal, state and local governments can leverage their collective resources to bring about meaningful change and improve the well-being of their citizens.
At the end of the FAAC deliberations, it was agreed that N966.110 billion should be distributed to the three tiers of government as Federation Allocation for the month of July 2023.
This amount was shared from a total gross revenue of N1.746 trillion from where the Federal Government received N374.485 billion, the States received N310.670 billion, the Local Government Councils received N229.409 billion, and the Oil Producing States received N51.545 billion as Derivation proceeds.
The gross revenue available from the Value Added Tax (VAT) for July 2023 was N298.789 billion, an increase from the previous month. From that amount, N11.681 billion was voted for Costs of Collection, N15.161 billion for Savings, Transfers, and Refunds, and the remaining N271.947 billion was distributed to the three tiers of government.
The Gross Statutory Revenue for the month was N1.150 billion. From that amount, N50.203 billion was allocated for costs of collection and N702.801 billion for savings, transfers, and refunds. The remaining balance of N397.419 billion was distributed among the Federal Government, States, Local Government Councils, and Oil Derivation.
A total of N13.375 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL) was distributed, and N283.904 billion from Exchange Difference was shared among the different tiers of government.
While Companies Income Tax (CIT), Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT) and Oil and Gas Royalties decreased, Import and Excise Duties and Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL) increased. Value Added Tax (VAT) also increased marginally.
The total revenue distributable for July was drawn from Statutory Revenue, Value Added Tax (VAT), Electronic Money Transfer Levy, and Exchange Difference, amounting to N966.110 billion.
The Excess Crude Account (ECA) as of August 22, 2023, had a balance of $473,754.57.
