* 2023 Budget breakdown : Defence, Security get lion’s share of N2.74trn
*Govt allocates allocates N2.5trn to Education; Health – N1.58trn
* Infrastructure -N998bn; Social Development Poverty Reduction -N756bn
The Federal Government has provided N470billion Special Fund in the 2023 Budget for university revitalisation and upward adjustment of lecturers’ salaries.
The Minister of Finance, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja during a media briefing while giving the breakdown of the 2023 Budget in other sectors as presented to the National Assembly a fortnight ago by President Muhammadu Buhari.
The Finance Minister further explained that the said N470billion was specially provided in the allocation to the Education Sector for upward adjustment of salaries for university lecturers and revitalization of universities.
It is instructive to note that the Federal Government, for the first time, is paying attention to Education as Mrs Ahmed stated that the sum of N300billion is for the university revitalisation while the sum of N170billion is for the upward adjustments of the university lecturers’ salaries.
According to her, the draft 2023 budget has been prepared on the background of international challenges such as the Russia-Ukraine war and COVID-19 pandemic.
The minister added that revenue generation has been a major challenge to national development in the country.
On the allocations for critical sectors, she said the sum of N2.05trillion is allocated to education and N1.58trillion for health.
The Finance Minister also disclosed that N2.74trillion is allocated to defense and security, infrastructure receives N998.9billion while social development and poverty reduction has N756 billion.
TheIdeal recalls that members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) recently suspended their eight-month strike over the upward review of lecturers’ welfare, adequate funding for the federal universities and other demands.
