The total monthly payout by the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) to the three tiers of government amounted to N647bn (US$2.11bn) in March (from February revenues). This was an increase of N11bn from the previous distribution. The local media coverage was particularly thin on this occasion, and lacked the usual commentary of the accountant-general of the federation. Distributions have picked up from the lows seen in 2015, 2016 and early 2017, and exceeded N600bn in the past four months.
- The gross statutory allocation consisted of N444bn and N113bn for mineral and non-mineral revenue respectively, compared with N405bn and N134bn the previous month.
- We would expect the rise in mineral revenue in view of the apparent pick-up in crude output. The lower collection from non-mineral sources is disappointing, given the positive statements emanating from the revenue collection agencies.
- After the deduction of collection costs, the states’ share of the statutory allocation was N131bn. (Oil-producing states received an additional N57bn.) This would not cover most states’ salary and other operating costs.
- The distributions are an important source of liquidity for the money market. This latest payout provided an inflow of about N330bn on Thursday (29 March). It represented the monies due to the state and local governments. The FGN’s share is paid into the treasury single account.
Sources: National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) local media; FBNQuest Capital Research
- We have taken the latest payout from local media reports. The data for earlier months in the chart are drawn from the NBS.
