State governments borrow about N46.17bn from three banks to pay salaries between January and June 2023, according to findings by The PUNCH.
The findings were based on an analysis of the half-year 2023 financial statements of Access Bank, Fidelity Bank, and Zenith Bank Group.
Reports have it that the states borrowed the most from Access Bank in six months, with a record of N42.97bn loan.
It was followed by Zenith Bank (N1.78bn borrowed) and Fidelity Bank (N1.42bn borrowed) within the six-month period.
According to the H1 2023 financial statement of Access Bank, the outstanding balance on the salary bailout fund was N58.84bn by June 30, 2023, from N101.81bn in December 2022.
About 25 states in Nigeria suffered a drop in their internally generated revenue and battled cash crunch in the first quarter of 2023.
Data obtained from the budget implementation report of each state showed that 25 states earned N182.26bn in Q1 2023.
This was a shortfall of 3.07 per cent or N5.77bn from the N188.03bn made in Q4 2022, based on a quarter-by-quarter analysis.
credit: Punch