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For today’s Numbers to Ponder, Nigeria emerged 97th position in global budget transparency survey, falling behind Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. Experts told DATAPHYTE that the opacity in the budget process makes Nigeria lose out among the comity of nations. In the fight against COVID-19 pandemic, no Workers’ Day celebration for frontline health workers as 113 already contracted the COVID-19 virus.
May 1st, 2020
For today’s Numbers to Ponder, Nigeria emerged 97th position in global budget transparency survey, falling behind Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. Experts told DATAPHYTE that the opacity in the budget process makes Nigeria lose out among the comity of nations. In the fight against COVID-19 pandemic, no Workers’ Day celebration for frontline health workers as 113 already contracted the COVID-19 virus.
The Open Budget Survey (OBS) 2019 on budget transparency, ranked Nigeria 97th position. This is from a global survey of 117 countries. According to the survey, Nigeria scored 21% in Budget Transparency, 22% in Public Participation, and 55% in Budget Oversight out of 100.
In Africa, it also ranked Nigeria low scoring (21/100) among its peers, coming behind Ghana (45), Sierra Leone (39), Liberia (38), and Sao Tome and Principe (24) in budget openness and transparency. [DATAPHYTE]
Dalberg, a leading international development advisory group, said in a report Thursday that Nigeria could contract by as much as 23 percent this year if the Covid-19 outbreak and global economic malaise deepen. In a moderate scenario, however, where there’s “a quick and efficient COVID-19 response and an oil price war détente,” then the economy is estimated to contract by 4 percent, Dalberg said.
Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, on Thursday, disclosed that at least 113 health workers have contracted coronavirus and tested positive for the disease. Ehanire, who spoke at the daily briefing of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, said not less than 113 of the health workers have come down with the COVID-19 infection across the country.
The Minister of State, Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo on Tuesday, threatened to resign his appointment if the 774,000 jobs approved by President Muhammadu Buhari under the special public works programme of National Directorate of Employment (NDE) for unskilled labour in rural areas is hijacked by politicians.
A move by the House of Representatives to repeal the Quarantine Act and enact the Control of Infectious Diseases bill stirred controversy on Thursday. The bill, which scaled second reading before it was stood down on Tuesday, has 82 sections. Sponsored by House Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila, the bill seeks to strengthen the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and make it more proactive and “not just reactive and function when there is an outbreak.”
The Federal Government will evaluate outcomes after two weeks from Monday to determine if it would maintain, reverse or further ease the lockdown in Lagos and Ogun States and Abuja, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control has said, explaining how the subnational economies would gradually reopen.
The Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly has amended the 2020 budget of the state from initial N597.7 billion to N366 billion, saying the decision is to meet up with the economic challenges due to coronavirus pandemic ravaging the world.
Check out our recent articles on Consumer Credit and our Prediction of 1,885 COVID-19 Cases By May 2020.
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Today, a new generation of Nigerians live through the country’s prolonged battle with two of its biggest socio-economic deficiencies – a protracted housing deficit and recurrent budget deficits.
A recent review of the 2019 Auditor General’s report by Dataphyte reveals that there was an unexplained net change of N668.162 billion in reserves of the consolidated statement of changes in net assets and equity.
Leading Media research and data analytics organisation, Dataphyte has released its maiden Dataphyte Advisory Note titled “the Nigerian post-oil Economy Advisory Note.
For Today’s Numbers to Ponder, 1.9 million people are displaced from their homes in the North-East. The figure reported by UNICEF, is another alarming figure, a day after NBS reported high numbers of poor people in the region. Away from Northeast, the country’s opposition party has challenged VP Yemi Osinbajo to defend himself in the alleged N5.8 billion NEMA scam. The Government is already looking for ways to weather a pandemic tsunami on the economy and may further review the crude oil price in the 2020 budget down to $20 per barrel. Another FG effort will start evacuating about 4,000 stranded citizens across the world as a result of COVID-19 from today.
For Today’s Numbers to Ponder, 33 States out of 36 States in Nigeria may find it difficult to pay workers’ salaries from the end of May 2020 over dwindling oil revenue. Kaduna and Nasarawa have already announced a pay cut. The Federal Government is expecting another $319m (N121bn) Abacha loot from the UK and France, the US Embassy in Nigeria said. In another news, as COVID-19 wreaks havoc, the United Nations has launched a $7 billion Global Humanitarian Response to help and protect the most vulnerable people in no fewer than 60 of the world’s poorest countries. To continue the fight against Coronavirus, US President Donald Trump has approved 250 ventilators to Nigeria among other countries.
