ECA to the rescue: States unable to pay salaries to get lifelines

Nigeria's 36 states are in debt to the tune of 658 billion naira ($3.3 billion) and one way out of the crisis would be for banks to extend loans made to states to up to 20 years.

Chairman the governors' forum and governor of Zamfara state, Abdulaziz Yari told newsmen in Abuja on the sideline of a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday. The governors had earlier demanded a refund of monies used in the execution of Federal Government projects in the various states, which runs into billions of Naira.



President Muhammadu Buhari, who said on Monday the country's treasury was "virtually empty", said after a meeting with the governors on Tuesday that the government could recover billions of stolen dollars while some money from the Excess Crude Account could be used to cover unpaid salaries.

"The total indebtedness of all the states including FCT (Federal Capital Territory) is put at 658 billion naira. Of course, you know that some of these states are owing salaries, and collected loans from banks," Zamfara state governor Abdulaziz Yari Abubakar told reporters after the meeting.

Several states obtained loans from the domestic bond market and banks when oil prices were high to fund infrastructure projects. But the price of crude, Nigeria's main source of revenue, has since plunged leaving the government with funding challenges and unpaid salaries.

On an immediate lifeline for states that owe salaries running into many months, President Buhari said that a committee headed by the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, will look at the Excess Crude Account and see what can be shared immediately.