The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris Malaga, has confirmed that Nigeria has fully repaid the 3.4 billion dollars COVID loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The Minister gave this hint while briefing State House Correspondents, at Abuja, after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Monday.
Idris addressed some scepticism regarding the repayment, saying, “we can report that Nigeria has, indeed, exited from that debt, meaning we have paid it in full.”
He explained that the loan was obtained during the COVID-19 period, before the current administration, adding that President Bola Tinubu viewed government as a continuum and directed that the country exited the debt.
Idris emphasised that the move has demonstrated Nigeria’s seriousness and capacity to meet its debt obligations, signalling to investors, both domestically and internationally, that Nigeria was responsible in managing its finances.
Also, Idris announced that FEC had directed the Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP) to communicate the new procurement threshold for goods and services to Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
He stated that the threshold had been in place for a long time and contributed to the number of approvals required from the council.
He also said that the council had directed all MDAs, especially the Ministry of Works, to collaborate more with the private sector on infrastructure development.
“The government is saying that there is an increasing need for private sector participation in our economic growth,” Idris stated.
