Sanwo-Olu says Lagos is a national asset, presents N1.693 trillion budget for 2023

Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has described the state as a national asset and urged the federal government to grant special economic status to Lagos. 

Governor Sanwo-Olu said this on Thursday while presenting the state’s 2023 budget estimate to the State House of Assembly. The budget estimate is N1,692,670,759,894, with a recurrent expenditure of N759,958,569,792, which represents 45% of the budget, and capital expenditure of N932,712,190,102, which represents 55%. 

He said the benefits of Lagos transcend a region of the country as all Nigerians enjoy the state’s prosperity in one way or the other. 

Sanwo-Olu, while presenting the budget titled, ‘Budget of Continuity’, said its effective implementation will be for the benefit of all. 

What Governor Sanwo-Olu is saying 

The governor said, “Lagos continues to experience increased pressure on social services due to unhindered migration from other parts of the country. 

“It is for this reason that I always sought and will still continue to reiterate the need for Lagos to be accorded a special status as a national asset. 

“Lagos is too big for this country to allow it to fail. Lagos is too strategic for us not to see that the success of Lagos is the success of this country, that the benefits of Lagos transcend one region, one part, or one scope of this country. 

“As a microcosm of the entire country, Lagos deserves all the support it can get at the national level.” 

The governor also said in his presentation of the proposed budget that the total revenue is expected to be N1,342,670,649,640 with a deficit financing of N350,000,000,000. 

This comprises total internally generated revenue of N1,108,435,649,640 with the total federal transfers put at N234,235,000,000.  

A sectoral breakdown of the budget shows that Economic Affairs has the highest budget of N339,482,825,430, which represents 20.06% of the budget, while General Public Service came second with N308,363,331,313, representing 18.22% of the budget. Education came third with N153,445,318,140 (9.07%) while Health came next with N67,358,643,068. 

What you should know 

Recall that in December 2021, the Lagos State House of Assembly passed the 2022 budget estimates of N1.758 trillion, with capital expenditure taking the lion’s share. 

The approved budget by the state legislature represents about a 26.7% increase when compared to an initial N1.388 trillion budget estimate presented by the Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu.