Business
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ON the heels of the Federal Government’s plan to borrow US$29.9 billion over the next two years, the Debt Management Office, DMO, has said that there was an urgent need for the Federal Government to formulate an economic blueprint or road-map for the medium term. DMO made the observation in its 2016 Debt Sustainability Analysis, DSA, report released yesterday in Abuja.
According to DMO, the formulation of a blueprint will engender confidence in both local and international investors on the way forward. The blueprint has become imperative since the investor perception of the country’s outlook is critical to economic recovery. “In view of the fall in federal government’s revenue, the government should reinforce its initiatives aimed at diversifying the productive base of the economy, thus improving the non-oil revenue receipt,” it stated.
The DMO said that concrete and urgent steps should be taken to broaden the nation’s tax base and improve efficiency in tax administration and collection. The report said given the country’s huge infrastructure needs, the government should sustain the policy of allocating a minimum of 30 percent of its budget to capital investments.
It said that judicious utilisation of such funds was necessary for infrastructure development and urged the government to ensure the strict adherence to the annual national budget calendar to facilitate growth recovery and reduce fiscal slippages and delays in budget implementation. The report noted that the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, by the National Assembly was long overdue and should be given speedy attention. – Vanguard
— Oct 27, 2016 @ 15:20 GMT
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