Cross River Governor enacts N296 billion budget for 2024.

By Hannah Nathan, Warri

Bassey Otu, the governor of Cross River State, signed the N296.985 billion People First budget into law on Friday.

Speaking at the event held in his office, the governor stated that N116 billion in recurrent expenses and N180 billion in capital expenditures made up the budget.

He said that the budget exceeded the N250 billion that was presented to the state House of Assembly for approval by approximately N96 billion.

According to Otu, the need to give people with disabilities sufficient financial support is what led to the surge.

“The increase in the budget allocation for this community is not just a necessity but a moral imperative to erase social imbalance of special demographics as they are a vulnerable group.

“This increase will facilitate better access to healthcare, assistive technologies, education, and employment opportunities tailored to their capabilities; it is not just a fiscal decision but a statement of our values as a society.

“In addition, there is an upscale budgetary provision for payment of gratuity, debt services, counterpart funds, nutrition activities, social protection, climate change and gender-responsive budget,” he said.