Business and Economy
Senate Committee Approves N140bn 2025 Budget for NCDC, Urges Prudent Use of Funds
By Iyojo Ameh
The Senate Committee on North Central Development Commission (NCDC) has approved the N140 billion budgetary allocation for the commission for 2025, with a call for judicious application of the funds once passed by the Senate.
The endorsement, announced by Senator Titus Zam, Chairman of the Committee, followed the budget defense session by the Managing Director of the Commission, Mr.
Senator Zam explained that after a detailed review of the budget proposals and the presentation made by the NCDC management team, the committee gave its approval to the N140 billion allocation as submitted.
In his presentation, Mr. Yiltsen said the N140 billion budget was the funding envelope provided by the federal government for the fiscal year. Of this amount, N100 billion is earmarked for capital projects across the six states in the North Central zone and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), while N40 billion is allocated to recurrent expenditure covering overheads and personnel costs.
He clarified that the N100 billion capital vote is spread across various projects in the region, cutting across eight key thematic areas: security, agriculture, mining, tackling environmental degradation, education, health, and road construction.
Mr. Yiltsen assured the committee that the Commission would ensure equitable distribution of projects across all six states and the FCT, noting that proper needs assessments would be carried out to guarantee fairness.
On recurrent expenditure, he added that a large portion of the N40 billion would be channeled into salaries for about 200 new staff, pending approval by the Office of the Head of Service.
While commending the NCDC boss for his detailed presentation, the committee stressed the need for accountability and prudent use of the N140 billion allocation, particularly the N100 billion earmarked for capital projects.
It also urged the governments of the six benefiting states and the FCT to provide suitable office accommodation for the Commission’s state branches.