Nigeria to set up $1.39 billion fund to fight coronavirus

ABUJA, April 4 (Reuters) - Nigeria plans to create a 500
billion naira ($1.39 billion)coronavirus fund to strengthen its
healthcare infrastructure to tackle the virus, the government
said on Saturday.
Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed, House of Representatives
speaker Femi Gbajabiamila and Senate President Ahmad Lawan
agreed in a meeting that the crisis intervention fund would pull
in cash as loans from various special government accounts and
get the rest from grants and loans from multilateral
institutions, a statement said.
"This
cisis intervention fund is to be utilised to upgrade healthcare
facilities," Ahmed said in the statement.
Nigeria, Africa's biggest nation, has 209 confirmed cases of
coronavirus and four deaths. Lagos state, neighboring Ogun state
and the capital territory of Abuja entered a two-week lockdown
on Monday aimed at stemming the spread of the virus.
​ The IMF is making $50 billion available from its emergency
financing facilities and some 80 countries have already asked
for help, including about 20 from Africa. The World Bank has
also approved a $14 billion COVID-19 response package.
Last week, Nigeria's Central Bank also launched a drive to
raise 120 billion naira from the private sector to source
equipment and infrastructure to fight the pandemic. The proposed fund would require approval from the National
Assembly in order to borrow the money from special accounts, and
Lawan said that while the body was on a two-week hiatus aimed at
stemming the spread of coronavirus, it would work to pass a bill
to enable the borrowing plan.
"When there is need for us to meet or to take legislative actio
n in support of ensuring that the government responds appropriat
ely to developments issues and challenges in the country, we wil
l do so," Lawan said.

($1 = 360 naira)