The House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs has finally reviewed and approved the 2023 budget of the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
This is coming after a protracted loggerhead between the committee and the ministry over the need to implement sections 10 and 7 of the 2022 Appropriation Act among others.
The loggerhead got to its peak when the committee rejected the 2023 budget of the ministry over alleged failure to implement important sections of the 2022 Appropriation Act.
When Mr Geoffrey Onyeamale, Minister of Foreign Affairs, presented the management of the ministry to the National Assembly on November 2, the committee declined to address the ministry’s budget.
According to the committee, the ministry must permit all missions in Nigeria to adhere to Section 10 of the 2022 Appropriations Act (as Amended).
The section enables the mission to spend its capital expenses without the ministry’s consent, however, the ministry is alleged of making it difficult for the missions to follow through.
According to the committee, the missions under the ministry’s supervision recycled unused cash without the parliament’s approval and spent money without authority.
The committee claims that these activities violate the 2022 Appropriations Act, and before the 2023 budget can be approved, the ministry must make the necessary corrections and provide the committee with supporting documentation.
Rep. Yakub Buba (APC-Adamawa), the committee’s chairman, stated at the hearing that the ministry had finally complied with the committee’s position of following the law.
In his statement, the compliance came about after numerous meetings and letters to the ministry and the mission went unanswered.
Buba, however, said that evidence to that effect has also been sent to the secretariat of the committee saying that they were now open to considering the budget.
He said that the only aim of the committee was to protect the laws of Nigeria and ensure the right things are done.
Documents presented at the hearing by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Amb. Zubairu Dada showed that the ministry and the missions were allocated the sum of N98.11 billion for 2023 operations
Of the total amount, the sum is N62.30 billion for personnel cost, N31.12 billion for overhead cost and N4.68 billion for capital expenditures.
The documents showed that in 2022, the personnel cost for the ministry and the mission was N49.22 billion with 98 per cent releases has been released to the ministry.
The document states that the whole amount of N23.01 billion is for overhead, of which 100% was given to the mission and 58% was released to the ministry.
Additionally, it revealed that N7.61 billion had been set aside for capital expenses, with 50% of the funds released going to each of the missions and the ministry.
The minister thanked the committee for continuing to support the ministry and for being willing to give ministry-related issues first priority.
Dada also claimed that without the assistance of the tor committee, the ministry’s successes would not have been achieved.
