Governor Alex Otti.
Governor Alex Otti of Abia State has approved the 2024 Appropriation Bill of N567.2 billion, which was recently endorsed by the State House of Assembly.
Otti, inking the bill on Thursday, emphasized that the 2024 Budget is poised to elevate Abia from its present state of underdevelopment to progress.
He said, “I want to say that this is a budget that would take Abia State out of underdevelopment to development. The journey of a thousand miles starts with one step.
“This is the first step, once we get things right, and we know we will get them right, the next few years will be uhuru for all our people, those living here and those who come from here and our friends.”
The governor emphasized that the intentional allocation of 84% for capital expenditure and 16% for recurrent expenditure in the budget was a strategic move to expedite the economic growth of Abia within a brief period.
“That we devoted 84% of the budget to capital expenditure is not an error. If you went through the details of the budget, you will find out that every kobo we intend to borrow will go into infrastructure or mapped out to infrastructure. Our discussions are on and we believe that as we require the funding, we will get them,” Otti affirmed.
He mentioned that the budget aims to attract foreign and local investments, stimulate large and medium businesses, enhance state security, and set the stage for Abia’s further development.
Otti praised the Speaker and members of the State House of Assembly for swiftly passing the bill. The Speaker, Rt Hon. Emmanuel Emeruwa, earlier stated that the budget would have a positive impact on the lives of Abia residents.
“The aim of passing the budget before the 31st of December 2023 is to ensure that the 2024 Budget becomes operational from the 1st of January 2024,” he said.