The approvals were made under the State Fiscal Transparency, Accountability, and Sustainability project, initiated in 2018 and ongoing, as per a document obtained from the bank.
The SFTAS project, designed to enhance transparency and accountability at the sub-national level, concluded in 2022. The World Bank committed a total of $1.5 billion to the project in two batches of $750 million each in December 2018 and December 2020.
Although the funds are granted to state governments, they are considered a loan to the Federal Government. The procurement plan for the project, covering February 2019 to August 2020, aligns with the World Bank’s Procurement Guidelines.
According to the procurement plan, the Home Finance Department received $25,713 for office stationery, $39,357 for additional office equipment and supplies for the SFTAS Programme Coordinating Unit, and $64,190 for furnishing and equipping the SFTAS Public Service Institute space.
Additionally, $14,842 was allocated for more office furniture and partitioning of the STFAS office, and $19,368 (up from $17,250) for additional office equipment and furniture for the Debt Management Office.
The department also got $24,038 for video conferencing equipment for the SFTAS PCU and MiFi modems for the DMO. The most substantial approval was $4.78 million for providing spatial data to states.
There was also $409,638 received for the procurement of project vehicles for the PCU and independent verification agent. The ministry also spent the procurement of an Inverter Power Backup System for the SFTAS Programme Coordinating Unit.
Out of the 21 items proposed, two were cancelled, four were successfully completed, and another was under implementation. Also, three were pending implementation, and 11 projects were only signed as of the time the document was released in December 2023.
The World Bank recently disclosed that Nigeria was the top recipient of its fresh loans in 2022, with about $2.9 billion released to the country.
