The Lagos State Government is seeking legislative approval for its infrastructure financing initiatives aimed at accelerating development across the State.
The requests were conveyed in separate letters from the Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Abayomi Oluyomi, to the Lagos House of Assembly.
Read on the floor of the House during plenary by the Clerk, Mrs. Adenike Oshinowo, the first request sought the Assembly’s resolution authorising Lagos State’s participation in the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) Receivables Discounting Programme under the Lagos State Infrastructure Finance Fund.
According to the letter, the programme is designed to provide immediate liquidity for the State by leveraging future FAAC allocations to finance critical infrastructure and capital projects.
The Commissioner explained that the initiative would enable Lagos to access third-party funding estimated at about seventeen million dollars for developmental projects.
In the second request, the Commissioner sought legislative approval for Lagos State’s proposed two hundred billion naira Series V bond issuance under its ₦1 trillion Debt and Hybrid Instruments Issuance Programme.
He noted that the State had consistently relied on the debt capital market to secure funding for major infrastructure and social development projects aimed at driving economic transformation.
The proposed bond, according to the letter, would finance priority projects, including the New Massey Children’s Hospital, Lagos Island General Hospital, the Lagos Rail Mass Transit Line, the Omu Creek Bridge, and other strategic infrastructure across the State Demographics.
The Commissioner urged the lawmakers to adopt the proposed resolutions to enable the State government proceed with the necessary arrangements to access the capital market, assuring the Assembly of the government’s commitment to prudent financial management and sustainable infrastructure development.
The Speaker of the House, Chief Mudashiru Obasa, referred both requests to the Joint Committee on Economic Planning and Budget and the Committee on Finance for further scrutiny.
The committees were directed to report their findings to the House on Thursday.
Written by Olusegun Haastrup