Nigeria’s public debt of N32.2tn as at the end of September 2020, according to the Debt Management Office and the signing of the country’s 2021 Appropriation Bill and 2020 Finance Bill into laws are some of the trending stories in Nigerian newspapers on Friday
The Punch reports that Nigeria’s public debt hit a total of N32.2tn at the end of September 2020, the Debt Management Office announced on Thursday.
The figure implies that the nation’s debt profile rose by N1.19tn between the second and third quarters of 2020.
According to a breakdown provided by the DMO on its website, the Federal Government’s total debt stood at N28tn as of September while the debt of the states and the Federal Capital Territory stood at N4.19tn.
Further disaggregation of Nigeria’s public debt showed that the domestic debt is N20tn or 62.18 percent of the total debt while foreign debt is 37.82 percent.
In dollar terms, Nigeria’s total debt is $84.57bn.
The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, had said last month that Nigeria’s total public debt may rise further by N6tn, hitting N38.68tn by December 2021.
The newspaper says that President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday signed the country’s 2021 Appropriation Bill and 2020 Finance Bill into laws, thereby enabling their implementation to commence by January 1, 2021 and ensuring the continuation of the January-December cycle.
In signing the N13.59tn budget, however, Buhari said he was aware of the changes the National Assembly made to the proposal he submitted.
He said his regime would examine the changes and,where necessary, approach the lawmakers with a request for amendment, virement or other appropriate adjustments.
The President signed the document at a brief ceremony held at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa, Abuja and witnessed by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo; leaders of the National Assembly and federal executive council members.
The Guardian reports that the Defence Headquarters (DHQ), yesterday, hinted that the military would change operational tactics against terrorists and bandits in 2021.
During the weekly media briefing yesterday in Abuja, Coordinator, Defence Media Operations, Major General John Enenche, put the number of insurgents, bandits and other criminal elements killed across theatres of operation nationwide in the outgone year at 2,403.
He said the figure excluded those neutralised during airstrikes.
Enenche continued: “The efforts and sacrifices of the gallant officers and men of the military as well as other security agencies that conduct these operations have been progressive. Within the period under review, troops engaged in a series of land, maritime and air operations, involving both kinetic and non-kinetic activities across the country.”
The coordinator said during the period, 864 hostages were rescued by soldiers, while 9,684,797 litres of stolen AGO, 33,516,000 litres of DPK were recovered in addition to the 1,910 criminal elements arrested and a large cache of arms, ammunition and equipment confiscated.
He noted that 46,581.8 barrels of crude oil and 22,881,257 litres of PMS were equally recovered by the armed forces in 2020.
The newspaper says that as Nigeria joins nations of the world to mark the dawn of the Year 2021 today, President Muhammadu Buhari has lamented the setback the country and its citizens suffered as a result of many challenges in 2020, with a promise to tackle them in the new year, prominent among which are insecurity, poor economy, and corruption.
This came as the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila; former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and former Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki also lamented the frustration in the land.
While many small businesses are unaware of details of the trade deal according to a recent survey by the Organised Private Sector, raising concerns about Nigeria’s implementation strategy, a large majority expressed worry about increased competition from other countries, despite the challenging business environment in the country.
Specifically, pre-existing nuances that are peculiar to African markets in terms of alignment with Western partners, language, visa restrictions, currency, insecurity, Customs Union, existing trade agreements in regions, dependence on commodity exports, infrastructure, low manufacturing activities among others, raise concerns about the expected progress from the AfCFTA market.
The Vanguard
President Muhammadu Buhari has reiterated the commitment of his administration to keep Nigerians safe from the resurgence of Coronavirus pandemic.
In a New Year broadcast on Friday in Abuja, the president stated that the Federal Government had completed arrangements to procure and distribute the COVID-19 vaccines to citizens.
He, however, enjoined Nigerians to always observe the COVID-19 prevention protocols to check the second wave of the deadly virus in the country.
He said: ”Keeping our country on a forward march is a duty which we all have and share.
”In this regard, keeping our country safe from a resurgent cycle of COVID-19 as this administration finalises its plans to procure and efficiently and effectively distribute the COVID-19 vaccines.
ThisDay
The UK is releasing an extra £47 million of aid to immediately provide food, nutrition, water and shelter for vulnerable families in nine countries and regions.
UK said £7 million of this funding will be made available in Nigeria through the World Food Programme and is estimated to reach 430,000 Nigerians with unconditional food assistance and nutrition support for 108 days.
The UK is also lobbying international donors to provide more funding and calling for all conflict parties to allow safe, sustained, and unhindered humanitarian access to all people in need of assistance; including 1.24 million people the UN estimate are living in areas currently inaccessible to humanitarian actors due to insecurity in the North-east.
Compounded by the coronavirus pandemic, humanitarian crises are getting worse according to UN data published earlier this month with 235 million people expected to be in need of urgent assistance in 2021 compared to 175 million people at the start of 2020. Life-saving food, nutrition, water, childhood vaccinations and shelter are all urgently needed to help families in some of the largest humanitarian crises around the world.
The number of people in need of humanitarian assistance in North-east Nigeria is also increasing, having risen to 8.9 million people as we enter 2021.
Over 3.4 million are living in acute food insecurity at crisis or worse levels in North-east Nigeria, including 1.2 million living in areas that are inaccessible areas due to insecurity.
GIK/APA