Electricity: Buhari approves funding for first phase of Siemens power deal

- President Buhari has kicked off the funding of the first phase of the power deal he signed with Siemens, a German power company

- The deal is aimed at rehabilitating and expanding Nigeria’s electricity grid

- The president said he has directed the power and finance ministers to kickstart the next phase of the project

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Nigeria's electricity sector may soon get a boost as President Muhammadu Buhari has approved funding for the first phase of a deal with Siemens AG to upgrade the country's power infrastructure.

The federal government signed an agreement with the German firm in July 2019 to rehabilitate and expand Nigeria’s electricity grid.

President Buhari on Wednesday, May 27, directed his power and finance ministers to “commence the pre-engineering and concessionary financing aspects” of the project with Siemens.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that President Buhari had solicited for the approval of $5.5 billion loans to finance the revised 2020 appropriation bill in a way that will enable the accommodation of some priority projects.

The information of the loan was contained in a letter directed to the House of Representatives by the president on Thursday, May 28.

According to the president, the funds will be used for the federal government’s priority projects and will also be channelled toward the fight against ravaging Covid-19 pandemic.

The president also said the funds will be used to assist the states in a concentrated effort against the scourge and help reposition some of the important sectors of the economy.

Buhari said the loan will be used to strengthen the healthcare system, finance smallholder farmers, and provide critical medical supplies to combat Covid-19.

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The breakdown of the loan showed that $113 million will come from the Islamic Development Bank while $1.5 billion will come from the World Bank.

Also, $500 million will come from the African Development Bank (AfDB), while $3.4 billion, which was earlier approved by the Senate, will come from the IMF.

Buhari explained that coronavirus pandemic has necessitated an increase in the expenditure for the health sector as shown in the reviewed "2020 budget and the medium-term expenditure framework.”

In another report, Remi Sonaiya, 2015 presidential candidate of KOWA party, has called for a radical system change in government that will enable Nigeria to channel its resources towards top sectors of the economy.

Expressing her displeasure on the situation of the country, the retired professor of French and Applied Linguistics submitted that since there is no more money to import foods into the country, farmers should be encouraged to farm.

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