Works ministry gets N100bn Sukuk proceeds

The ministry of works, power and housing has received N100 billion proceeds from the Sukuk subscription.

This comes nine working days after the subscription period of the non-interest bond.

The offer period, which opened on September 14, closed on September 20. It was oversubscribed to the tune of N105.87 billion.

At an event in Abuja on Thursday, Kemi Adeosun, minister of finance, handed over a cheque of N100 billion to Babatunde Fashola, minister of works, power and housing.

“This is the first Sukuk bond issuance for Nigeria. It is about financial inclusion and deepening of our financial markets,” she said.

“The proceeds will be used to further support government capital spending for 2017 – the construction and rehabilitation of 25 key economic roads across the six geopolitical zones of the country.

“The roads will ease commuting, spur economic activities across the country and further close our infrastructural gap.

“Each of the six geopolitical zones is expected to receive the sum of N16.67 billion for road projects in their respective zones.

“The north central and south-south zones accounted for five each of the 25 key economic road projects, while the north-east, north-west and south-east have four road projects each.

“Three projects are to receive funding from the Sovereign Sukuk proceeds in the south-west zone.”

The ministries have been silent about the roads to be catered for even though Patience Oniha, director general of the Debt Management Office, had said the roads have been identified.