FG to release subsidy payment today … adopts new accounting principle for 2014 budget

The Federal Government on Wednesday said it
would continue to block loopholes in the fuel
subsidy regime, adding that marketers with
genuine claims would be paid on Thursday
(today).
The Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-
Iweala, said the government had worked so
hard to clean up the mess in the payment of
fuel subsidy and had brought down the claims
from N2.2tn in 2011 to N971bn.
She also said of the N850bn so far released
for capital projects in the 2013 budget, about
76 per cent had been utilised by the
Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the
government.
She spoke in Abuja while briefing journalists
on recent developments in the Nigerian
economy.
The minister said, “We have released N850bn
now; we released N400bn in the first quarter,
N200bn in the second quarter, and we have
released N250bn for the third quarter.
“And we have cash-backed virtually all we
have released. For example, of this fresh
N250bn, we have loaded N210bn onto the
system already.
“From the N600bn released for the first and
second quarters, the MDAs have used 76 per
cent on the average, and we just released
N250bn of which N210bn has been cash-
backed, and we hope to cash-back the
remainder at the end of the Federation
Accounts Allocation Committee meeting.”
It was learnt that the FAAC members would
reconvene on Thursday (today) following the
stalemate in the last meeting.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government will from
the 2014 fiscal period prepare its budget on
the new National Chart of Accounts.
The Accountant-General of the Federation, Mr.
Jonah Otunla, said this while inaugurating the
implementation committee on the application
of the International Public Sector Accounting
Standards.
The NCA is a systematic list of the account
used by an entity to define each class of items
for which money or the equivalent is spent or
received.
Otunla, according to a statement from the
Office of the Accountant-General of the
Federation, said the NCA would be used by
the three tiers of government.
He said, “In line with the adoption of the
IPSAS, the OAGF, states’ accountant-generals
and Directors of Finance and Accounts/
Treasury at local government councils are to
commence the implementation of the
provisions of the IPSAS and keep their books
of account in accordance with the new COA
and the General Purpose Financial Principle
format; all concerned should strictly comply
with this.”
This, Otunla said, would help to improve the
quality of general purpose financial reporting
by public sector entities, leading to better
informed assessments of the resources
allocation decisions made by governments.