Tinubu secures $1.5bn zero-interest World Bank loan

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun announced at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Monday that President Bola Tinubu’s administration has secured $1.5bn zero-interest World Bank loan.

The Minister disclosed this to State House Correspondents after the FEC meeting in Abuja on Monday.

Edun said that the FEC meeting approved the application for financing from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA).

He said that the country was able to access $1.5 billion from the IDA, which is the virtually free or zero-interest lending arm or financing arm of the World Bank.

“Nigeria has been able to make the kind of macro-economic moves to take the tough decisions to restore balance in the economy in the government’s finances that have warranted support.

“This had engendered support from the multilateral development banks.

“It is on this basis that the World Bank is willing to consider and to process on our behalf $1.5 billion of concessional financing, relatively cheap financing and financing that will be dispersed relatively quickly,” he said.

Edun said that another $80 million in financing from the African Development Bank was approved by the FEC for the Ekiti Knowledge Zone (EKZ) project aimed at empowering the youths in the sector of Knowledge Economy through technology and communications generally.

He said, “This is basically to support young people and their quest to take on technology to use it to be employed to be trained and to benefit from being part of the knowledge economy.

“This is being part of the technological wave that is present very much in Nigeria, which is becoming a bigger and bigger share of the economy.”

While briefing the state house correspondents, Minister of Labour and Employment, Simon Lalong, said that FEC gave approval for the agreement between labour and the government during the October 2 meeting.

“Presidential approval was given after analysing the agreement to provide for industrial harmony. Similarly, the 30 days implementation timeline agreed on was also approved by FEC,” he said.