Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi state on Teusday
presented the 2019 appropriation Bill of N188.4b to the State House of Assembly. He later assented to the National Health Insurance Scheme
Bill.
Umahi while presenting the appropriation Bill of N188, 401, 913, 868, said that the State Executive Council has painstakingly went through the performance of the 2018 budget and expressed satisfaction with the level of performance and implementation.
He however, disclosed that the 2018 budget witnessed a lot of bottlenecks affecting every sector of the state economy simultaneously, citing global instability occasioned by persistent incidence of terrorism and other challenges.
The Governor said the state pursued the implementation of the 2018 budget with resilience and determination to ensure the attainment of ambitious target even in the face of scarcity of funds.
“The 2019 budget titled ‘Budget of Divine Fulfilment’ has expenditure ratio between recurrent and capital expenditure of 22.1 percent to 77
percent with recurrent expenditure gulping N41.556b and capital of N49.068b” he said
He said the 2019 budget which is lower than last year budget is expected to take care of recurrent expenditure and is expected to address all ongoing capital projects across the State.
Earlier in the State Executive Council before the presentation of the 2019 appropriation Bill to the State House of Assembly, Governor
Umahi assented to the Health Insurance Scheme Bill to address health needs of the state civil servants.
Umahi noted that the assent to the bill followed the passing of the bill by the State House of Assembly, adding that the law when fully implemented is expected to address all health needs of the Civil servants.
The Speaker of Ebonyi State House, Mr Francis Nwifuru, earlier in his address extolled the prudent management of all resources accruing to the State by the Governor and maintained that it was the magic behind
massive infrastructural development in the state.
He said the synergy between the executive and the legislature has provided the state enabling environment to excel above her contemporaries and had placed the state on a high pedestal of economic boom.
Nwifuru noted that despite the hard bite of economic challenges, Ebonyi State has remained on the rise through robust and healthy management of resources by the State governor who has also been discouraging profligacy in governance.
