Governor Hyacinth Alia, on Wednesday, presented the sum of N550.1 billion as the 2025 appropriation bill to the Benue State House of Assembly for consideration and passage into law.
 
Mr Alia told the lawmakers that out of the total budget size, N175.4 billion is for recurrent expenditure while N374.7 billion is for capital expenditure.
 
The governor said that the total estimate represented a 47.5 per cent increment over the 2024 revised and approved figure of N373 billion.
 
He stated that the appropriation bill tagged “Budget of Human Capital Development, Food Security, and Digital Economy” was to consolidate the gains made in 2024.
 
Mr Alia further explained that the proposed recurrent expenditure of N175.4 billion was 13.55 per cent higher than the previous year.
 
According to him, the budgeted capital expenditure of N374.7 billion represents a 71.5 per cent increment on the 2024 revised capital expenditure.
 
“The budget breakdown indicated that the sum of N212.2 billion, representing 38.52 per cent, is for administration; N196.6 billion, representing 35.68 per cent, is for the economy; law and justice will take N26.6 billion, representing 4.84 per cent while social welfare will gulp N115.5 billion, representing 20.96 per cent.
 
“We have the vision. We have the will. And most importantly, we have the people ready to work alongside us to turn this vision into reality.
 
“Together, we will build a state where every citizen has the opportunity to succeed, where food is plentiful, and where the digital economy opens new frontiers of opportunity for all,” he said.
 
The governor said the intention of the government was to stay within the limits of its recurring revenue to build the state without accruing unnecessary debts for generations unborn.
 
He, however, said that since the 2025 budget was a deficit one, it proposed a borrowing plan of a conservative sum of N26bn, representing a modest 4.7 per cent of the proposed aggregate expenditure for 2025.
 
“This is lower than the state’s debt-to-GDP ratio of 8.2 per cent, which is within the 25 per cent debt sustainability threshold benchmark.
 
“Despite these favourable debt ratios, I want to reiterate that borrowing will only be considered as a last resort and for regenerative investment purposes,” he added.
 
Mr Alia stated that the problem of internally displaced persons (IDPs) remained a challenge, adding that they have reasonably improved their living conditions.
 
He said the Bureau of International Cooperation and Development has elicited substantial grants from donors, totalling N85 billion.
 
(NAN)