The Federal Executive Council, today approved an additional $200m loan from the International Development Association, an arm of the World Bank, in support of Lagos State Development Policy Operation.
This was disclosed by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed while addressing a post-FEC press conference with his counterpart, Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola.
Mohammed said, After the first tranche was disbursed, there was a freeze on the second tranche.
“The initial agreements we had with the World Bank was a 40-year loan, a 10-year moratorium and 0.5 per cent interest.
“But because of the delays that subsequently characterised the partisan interference that took place, our profile as a nation also changed we had become a bigger economy.Though money was being lent to us, not now as a highly indebted nation anymore.
“So by the time this one was approved now because of the delays, we had lost the opportunity of 40 years as it is now a loan of 25 years.
“The moratorium has reduced to five years instead of 10 years.
“The interest rate had gone up to 2.5 per cent, but what is still heart-warming about it is that it helps to finance infrastructure.
He also listed some of the projects that the loan would be spent on to include the 10-lane Lagos-Badagry Expressway and the inner roads in Apapa among others.
The initial arrangement was for the loan to be administered by parts of $200 million each year, starting from 2011 to 2013, according to Fashola who is the immediate past Governor of the state.
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