The Senate on Wednesday approved $16,230,077,718 and €1,020,000,000 loans requested by President Muhammadu Buhari to fund projects.
The upper legislative chamber also approved grant components of $125 million.
The Senate gave the approval following the consideration of the report of its Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, chaired by Senator Clifford Ordia.
The World Bank, African Development Bank and the French Development Agency (AFD) are among the funding agencies.
In July, the national assembly approved the sums of $8.3 billion and €490 million loans as initial requests in the 2018-2020 borrowing plan.
Later on September 15, Buhari requested for additional facilities in an addendum to the 2018-2020 borrowing plan.
Ordia, while presenting the committee’s report on Wednesday, said the projects which funds are requested for in the 2018-2020 borrowing plan are ongoing. He said the projects will stimulate a “rebirth of commercial and engineering activities and the consequent tax revenues payable to Government as a result of these productive activities will increase.”
He said the committee observed that these projects would have a multiplier effect on “stimulating economic growth through infrastructure development, job creation, poverty alleviation, health care and improve our security architecture.”
