World Bank provides Nigeria with $800m to ameliorate the effects of fuel subsidy removal

NIGERIA has been granted a sum of $800m by the World Bank to enable the federal government initiate a comprehensive palliative scheme for its citizens before the removal of the national fuel subsidy in June.

Over recent tears, the Nigerian government has been under pressure to scrap its fuel subsidy regime, as it is bleeding the economy dry. Conscious of the fact that the government can no longer afford the subsidy, finance minister Zainab Ahmed, has agreed to scrap it by June and revealed that initiatives will be introduced to make the impact less stressful for the citizens.

She noted that already there has been meaningful engagement with the newly established Presidential Transition Council and the incoming administration, with a view to driving the palliative programme. According to Mrs Ahmed, good chunk of the $800m being provided by the World Bank will go to the 10m households considered to be most vulnerable, to cushion the effect of the subsidy removal.

Mrs Ahmed said: “We have secured a modest sum of $800m from the World Bank to drive the palliatives and we are targeting about 10 million households or 50 million vulnerable Nigerians in the first instance. We are currently engaging all the stakeholders. We know that various plans are being considered, including the need for buses by the Labour, among several other palliative schemes.”