The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, has disclosed that N502.3 billion has so far been spent by the Federal Government to stabilise the economy after being hit by the rampaging Covid-19 pandemic.
Speaking in Abuja on Tuesday, at the ‘National Dialogue on Covid-19: Economic Impact and Assessment of National and States’ recovery plans and Policy options‘, the minister explained that Nigeria was deeply affected by the pestilence because it was recovering from recession before Covid-19 led to an all-time fall of crude oil prices being the economic pillar of the country.
According to Ahmed, the key interventions the N502 billion was used for include: the establishment of an N500 billion Covid-19 crisis intervention fund to finance the upgrade and improvement of healthcare facilities; the creation of a Special Public Works Programme to employ 774,000 people, among others.
Mrs. Ahmed, however, disclosed that lessons were learned from the pandemic, especially the urgent need to fix the challenges of the health sector.
According to her, the various challenges plaguing the health sector propelled the incumbent to pursue pro-active and people-oriented policies with an emphasis on human capital development and providing critical infrastructure for the well-being of Nigerians.
