The president, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (ret.), said on Tuesday that Nigeria would pay 1.8 trillion naira ($4 billion) in additional interest in 2023 if the National Assembly rejected a request for a loan-for-bond swap from the Central bank. of overdrafts from Nigeria to the government.
Buhari stated this during the enactment of the 21.83 trillion naira 2023 budget bill at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Village in Abuja.
The Senate last week delayed a decision on the president’s request to convert $53 billion of central bank overdrafts to the government into 40-year bonds after some lawmakers questioned the plan.
Speaking on Tuesday, the president said the government was currently paying a three percent spread on top of the central bank’s 16.5 percent lending rate, but his regime had negotiated a nine percent rate for bonds. , according to a report from the independent.
Lawmakers increased the 2023 budget by 6.4% to 21.83 trillion naira after raising the oil price assumption to $75 a barrel from $70.
Buhari said he enacted the amended appropriation bill after considering “the imminent transition process,” referring to the nation’s January general election, “to allow its implementation to begin without delay.”
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