The Federal Government (FG) has announced that the sum of N656 billion would serve as bailout funds to the 36 states of the country, with each state projected to receive N18.2Billion. The special bailout fund is called Bridge Financing Facility which was approved by President Muhammadu Buhari to assist states in meeting their financial obligations. This was disclosed in a statement on Thursday by the Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Publicity, Laolu Akande.
Akande said the Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed disclosed this at the virtual meeting of the National Economic Council (NEC) presided over by the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo.
Also in attendance for the meeting were State Governors, Federal Ministers, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and other senior government officials.
Ahmed told the council that the Bridge Financing Facility is currently being processed by the CBN.
The statement issued by Akande reads, "The approved Bridge facility of N656.112 billion will be disbursed in six tranches over a period of six months to the States. Expectedly, each of the 36 states will have a total loan amount of N18.225 billion; with a 30-year tenor, and a 2-year moratorium at an interest rate of 9%.
"The facility is to help the states afford the repayment of previous bailout facilities guaranteed for them by the Federal Government."
The Federal Government approved the conditional loan facility to states in 2017 through the CBN to help in curbing the impact of states' dwindling resources.
In 2021, the CBN asked states to repay the previous bailout fund but the governors asked for more time and needed more support which lead to the Bridge Financing Facility.
