The Federal Government has proposed June 2022 deadline for the final removal of subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol.
However to cushion the effects of the removal, the government said it will pay a N5,000 relief fund for poorest Nigerians. According to it, the transport subsidy payment of N5,000 to the vulnerable would be transferred digitally for a minimum period of six months and a maximum of 12 months.
This, the government noted, will happen after the removal of fuel subsidy in June 2022 to give people time to adjust.
Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, made this known on Wednesday while briefing State House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari.
She underscored that as at the last Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) meeting, fuel subsidy costs the country nearly N250 billion per month and three trillion annually as the NNPC remits near-zero naira.
According to her, this has made the removal expedient. The support fund upon approval from FAAC for 20-40 million Nigerians will not be done in cash.
She further encouraged states to financially contribute to the N5,000 relief fund to improve the productive abilities of Nigerians.
On Tuesday the minister said Nigeria will remove fuel subsidies by 2022 and replace them with a N5000-a-month transportation grant to the poorest Nigerians.
Speaking at the launch of the World Bank Nigeria Development Update (NDU), the minister said the grant will go to about 30 to 40 million Nigerians who make up the poorest population of the country.
She said the final number of beneficiaries will depend on the resources available after the removal of the fuel subsidy.