The Cross River State governement has secured a grant of Twenty million, four hundred thousand US Dollars ($20.4M) as a result it performance in the Fiscal, Transparency and Accountability indicators of the World Bank in 2020, this is according to information from the State ministry of finance.
The information further revealed that the grant was earned after a detailed annual performance assessment of all 36 states in Nigeria under the States’ Fiscal Transparency, Accountability and Sustainability (SFTAS) programme.
Mr Asuquo Ekpenyong Jr, the Cross River State Commissioner for Finance and Chairman of the State SFTAS Steering Committee, said that the grant is a result of deliberate planning and hardwork, promising that the funds will be properly utilised.
His words; “The Cross River SFTAS Steering Committee is made up of the internal revenue service, office of accountant general, budget office, bureau of due process and the debt management office. Heads of these MDAs and their staff played a critical role in the State’s resounding success. We all worked days and nights, on weekends, on holidays and even during the lockdown to achieve these results for and on behalf of the good people of Cross River State.”
SFTAS is a World Bank funded competitive programme of the federal government which rewards states for meeting specifically set indicators for improved fiscal transparency, accountability and sustainability. The Cross River State SFTAS Steering committee is chaired by the State’s Ministry for Finance and was responsible for the implementation of the SFTAS program in the state over the course of the year.
The Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning is overseeing SFTAS, while the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation acts as the independent verification agent.
