By Beverly Ehia, Abakaliki
The Financial Controller of the International Fund for Agricultural Development Value Chain Development Programme (IFAD -VCD), Usman Mohammed Damatar, has called for an increase in the allocation for the program.
Mr. Damatar made the call on Thursday in an ongoing 5-Day Meeting/work session on 2023 Draft an Annual work plan and Budget at the Osborn La palm Abakaliki.
The program aimed at preparing the agencies to work plan/budget for the year 2023 was organized Ebonyi state Value Chain Development program in conjunction with the Federal government of Nigeria.
Speaking shortly after the day’s program, Mr. Damatar appealed that the 2023 VCDP allocation be increased from 15 to 40 million dollars.
He said, “The importance of this program is that we are supposed to be doing the budget before the year runs out so that we will have a full implementation taken into consideration from January to December. If the budget is not done now it means it is the beginning of delaying the process of approval. But if we have the budget starting now then definitely before the year runs out we will be to get approval to implement the fiscal year budget from January 2023 to December 31st, 2023.
“Our target is that by the end of this month and early October the budget should be ready both from the preparatory aspect to the processing and also approval.
“We have three levels of approval; one is at the state level, the state will have to present whatever they do to their steering committee then they will take it to the National level if the National consolidates the budget they also take it to the Ministry of Agriculture.
“They also have about three other processes; from the National office to what we call the program coordinating unit then it goes to the steering committee of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture. If this is approved at the government level it goes to the steering committee of the ministry, which is headed by the Minister in conjunction with other directors.
“Ebonyi state is one the important state for IFAD-VCDP, they have been on the board since their inception in 2014 and Ebonyi is doing very well we like the buying-in of the Governor personally because whatever we do he is very much aware of it.
“There is a problem with funds all over the world, especially with the Russian-Ukrainian war which is affecting the economy of the world, you know IFAD gets its funds from the contributing country, so since the coming of Covid 19, this funding is not fought to come as required. Therefore IFAD wants to ensure that the little that they get is utilized that’s why they introduce that disbursement Cap.
“Considering the period of implementing VCDP which is 2024 and we are not at more than 50 percent now so we are left with only two financial areas.
“Therefore with the disbursement cap of 15 million to the, project it may show that at the end of the program we may not finish all that’s areas is why we are targeting to ask for 40 million dollars so that this will seriously help us to push the remaining funds that are left for VCDP so that by 2023 if we get 40 million dollars.
“We are calling for an increase to the disbursement cap that is allocated to VCDP from 15 to 40 million dollars”.
Meanwhile, the state Coordinator of IFAD, Dr Sunday Ituma said,
“Annually the program organizes a budget section where the National office together with all the participating states comes together to prepare for the subsequent years to get.
This time around Ebonyi state has been selected to host all 9 participating states and the National office to work out the annual budget for 2023″.