Kano Government spends N2.1bn on travels, transportation in 3 months-Report
By Aminu Abubakar
Kano state government under the administration of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf has spent over N1.013 billion on international travel in the first three months of 2024.
In the same vein, N1.14 billion was spent on local travel by the state.
SolaceBase discovered this in a review of budget performance documents for the period.
In total the sum of N2.1 billion was spent on travel and transport in the first three months of the 2024 fiscal year.
This is according to details provided in the budget performance documents of the state for the first quarter of 2024.
The total amount the state plans to spend on repairs of public schools is N3.159 billion, meaning that assuming the money is broken into every three months, it plans to spend N789 million on repairs of public schools every three months on the average, less than it spent on travels alone in same three months.
The amount it spent in three months is more than it spent in the whole of 2023 on the same international travel.
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The amount is also the highest in the first quarter of any year between 2021 and 2024.
This development comes despite the tough economic circumstances facing the country with Kano state included.
The review shows that Kano state spent the sum of N599 million on International Travel and Transport under the description “training” and another N414 million on International Travels and Transport under the broader description (others) in the first three months of 2024, totalling N1.013 billion.
SolaceBase reports that this money is more than what it spent on capital needs of critical sectors such as education which it spent N250 million on, and health N98 million.
In 2023, the state spent the sum of N486 million on international travels broken down into International Travels and Transport(training) N335.6 million and International travel and transport (others) N151.4 million.
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In 2022 International travels under the training tag took N848.8 million while International travels (others) stood at N123 million totalling N971 million.
In 2021, a total amount of N720 million was spent on international travels.
Kano State Expenditure Amid Challenges
This development on N2.1 billion expenditure on travels and transportation in three months comes amid economic challenges facing the state.
For instance, Kano state suffers from a dearth in healthcare infrastructure.
Like other states in Nigeria, Kano also suffers from high unemployment including issues around underdevelopment in rural areas.
Water scarcity is a major challenge in Kano state, a situation which the state has failed to tackle.
Kano state has over one million out-of-school children and could bridge the gap in out-of-school children by providing basic infrastructures assuming that it did not spend so much for international trips.
51% of households in Kano do not have access to sanitary facilities, 31% do not have access to clean drinking water, time to healthcare in Kano is only 37.9., according to the National Bureau of Statics, in the multidimensional poverty index.
In May 2024, Kano state lawmakers were said to have gotten official vehicles worth N2.7 billion for themselves, the governor’s chief of staff, Shehu Wada Sagagi said that the lawmakers deserved the vehicles.
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