FG projects a GDP of 3.75% and an inflation rate of 17.16% in the 2023 budget
Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, has announced that the country’s GDP growth rate is expected to be 3.75% in 2023, while the inflation rate is expected to average 17.16%. This represents a slowdown in the inflation rate, which was over 21% in November 2022. The projections are based on the petroleum subsidy reform ratio, and the petroleum subsidy will remain in place until mid-2023. Total revenue available to fund the 2023 budget is expected to be N10.49tn ($28.1bn), including N2.29tn from oil-related sources and N2.43tn and N2.64tn from non-oil sources. Fuel subsidy payments will also remain until mid-2023.
$2.5b Lagos Fourth Mainland Bridge to be completed in four years
The Lagos state government in Nigeria plans to build a new bridge called the Fourth Mainland Bridge. It will cost about $2.5 billion and take about four years to complete. Construction will start in the first quarter of 2023. A company called CCECC-CRCCIG Consortium won the bid to build the bridge, which will be 37 kilometers long and go from Abraham Adesanya in Ajah to the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
It will pass through several other places and have three toll plazas and nine interchanges. The bridge is expected to reduce traffic on other bridges and make it easier for people to travel around the area. The company that will build the bridge will also be responsible for maintaining it for 40 years. The government will compensate people whose homes or businesses will be affected by the construction. The bidding process for the project took over 1,000 days to complete.
DisCos seemingly increased nationwide electricity tariffs in December
Nigeria’s state minister for power, Goddy Jedy-Agba, refused to confirm a reported increase in electricity tariffs in December 2022. Speaking at a public hearing of the House of Representatives Committee on Power, Jedy-Agba passed the responsibility for answering questions about the tariff increase to the chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission. Electricity tariffs were reportedly increased across the country at the end of December 2022, with prepaid customers who bought power just before Christmas confirming the increase.
A Fall From Grace For Embattled FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried As His Net Worth Falls Below $100,000
Sam Bankman-Fried, the CEO of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange, is reportedly worth less than $100,000 following the collapse of his company in November 2022. Bankman-Fried is currently awaiting trial on charges including wire fraud and money laundering, which could result in a 115-year sentence if he is convicted. In March 2022, Bankman-Fried’s net worth was estimated at $24 billion, but it has since plummeted due to a series of events including the liquidation of holdings of the FTX token by Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao and the subsequent rush of investors to withdraw their funds from FTX.