The Federal Government has announced a significant milestone in its efforts to recover outstanding debts owed by Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) with the recovery of N57 billion from a total debt of N5.2 trillion.
This disclosure was made by the Permanent Secretary, Special Duties, Federal Ministry of Finance, Okokon Ekanem Udo, during a Sensitisation Workshop on Federal Government Debt Recovery Drive through Project Lighthouse Programme for the South-East geo-political zone held in Enugu State on Tuesday.
According to a statement by the ministry’s spokesman, Mohammed Manga, the recovered debts were identified through data aggregated from over 5,000 debtors across more than 93 MDAs.
Represented by the Ministry’s Director, Special Projects, Aisha Omar, Mr. Udo highlighted that the recovered funds included refunds from companies that failed to deliver on projects for which payment had been made, as well as unpaid credit facilities and judgment debts.
He emphasized that the initiative, known as Project Lighthouse, enabled the aggregation of economic and financial information from multiple agencies, addressing revenue loopholes facilitated by poor information sharing and enforcement.
Through the Debt Analytics and Reporting Application, the Ministry has consolidated debts totaling approximately N5.2 trillion, with N57 billion already recovered, Mr. Udo stated. He attributed this success to the concerted efforts of stakeholders and the Federal Government.
Furthermore, he revealed that the Ministry has issued a Ministerial directive to all MDAs to aggregate all Government debts across the Public Finance Space, aiming to establish a single window for monitoring the credit profile of the Government.
The announcement underscores the Government’s commitment to enhancing revenue generation and fiscal discipline, leveraging technology and data-driven strategies to address financial challenges and strengthen the nation’s economic resilience.
