PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has assented to the 2020 Appropriation Bill of N10.594 trillion on Tuesday.

The 2020 spending plan was presented to the joint session of the National Assembly on October 8 at a total of N10.33 trillion.

Meanwhile, the Senate increased the budget to N10,594,362,364,830 before it was passed to the president on December 5.

Thus, there was an increase of N263.95 billion over the executive’s proposal.

“We have examined the adjustments and may revert to the National Assembly with a request for a Virement or other relevant amendments,” President Buhari said in his remarks.

As it is a deficit budget, he said 2020 – 2022 borrowing plan would be forwarded to the National Assembly, in due course.

The president said the global oil market outlook and Nigeria’s strategic approach to revenue growth established the hope of financing the 2020 budget.

It is my pleasant duty, today, on my 77th birthday, to sign the 2020 Appropriation Bill into law. I’m pleased that the National Assembly has expeditiously passed this Bill. Our Federal Budget is now restored to a January-December implementation cycle.

— Muhammadu Buhari (@MBuhari) December 17, 2019

Buhari also disclosed that the passage of the Finance Bill would be done soon. Once, also, signed into law, the Finance bill would support the funding and implementation of the 2020 Budget.

“We shall sustain this tradition by ensuring that subsequent budgets are also accompanied by a Finance Bill,” he said.

By signing the 2020 budget in December, Nigeria will operate a January-December budget cycle.

“In the twenty years since the return to civilian democracy, this will be just the fourth time that the Federal Budget was passed before the end of the previous year, and this is the earliest,” he expressed.

He lauded the National Assembly for a prompt passing of the bill within two months it was proposed to the legislative floor.

Buhari also said the presentation of the 2021 Appropriation Bill to the National Assembly would be done in September 2020. 

He reinstated working with the Ninth National Assembly to give effect to the constitutional, legislative and other actions that might be necessary to address the various challenges currently associated with the federal budgeting process, including the enactment of an Organic Budget Bill.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Senate President Ahmad Lawan, Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker of the House of Representatives, and other political leaders were present when the president signed the 2020 spending plan.