COVID-19: FG to spend N296bn on vaccination in two years

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, on Wednesday, gave an indication that the Federal Government will spend N296 billion on COVID-19 vaccinations in 2021 and 2022.

She also confirmed that the supplementary budget for procurement of security equipment and COVID-19 vaccines being prepared by the Federal Government is not ready yet.

She said the government was still waiting for the service chiefs who are expected to aggregate their request and submit to the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), who will in turn forward to her ministry.

Ahmed spoke in an interview with State House correspondents after the weekly meeting of the Federal Executive Council presided over by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Recall that Buhari on Monday told both the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila; as well as the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, Kayode Fayemi, that the government would send supplementary budget to the National Assembly to cater for the procurement of equipment and COVID-19 vaccines.

The minister, who said the government was still waiting for the service chiefs, however, expressed the hope that the security estimates would be made available soon.

She said, “For the military hardware, we have met with the service chiefs and the Chief of Defence Staff. They are supposed to aggregate their request for review amongst themselves and then pass it to Mr President, then it will be sent to us.

“So, we are waiting for the information of the aggregate requirements.”

On the N296 billion to be spent on COVID-19 vaccination in 2021 and 2022, the minister said the figure was arrived at after the government dropped the idea of building primary health care centres which would have cost N103billion.

She explained, “Sometime in January, the President, based on the request by the Ministry of Health, gave an approval in principle for the Ministry of Health to work with the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning to prepare and take to the National Assembly a supplementary budget for COVID-19 vaccination. Punch