Nigeria received $6,084,364,075 (about N720bn) assistance from foreign countries, international agencies and non-governmental organisations during the administration of former of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the Minister in charge of National Planning Commission, Senator Sanusi Dagash, has said.
Daggash, who appeared before a House Committee on Loans and Debt Management on February 5, 2008, put the annual receipt at N90bn.
He said in a 14-page document he presented to the committee that concessional loans or credit from multi-lateral agencies such as the World Bank. Grants came from donor countries and NGOs.
According to the document obtained on Wednesday by our correspondent, grants totalled $ $3,244,728,807; credits, $2,826,730,000; and NGOs, $12, 905, 267.
The minister said while the Federal Government effectively captured all the data on the credit side, it found it difficult to keep a similar record on the grants and donations for activities by NGOs in the country.
Daggash said, �Many donors and NGO�s have been challenged by our request. They found the template we provided too rigorous and thus find it difficult to provide all the required data.�
He said that while the European Union had requested for more time to supply the required data, some like JICA had been evasive.
On credits, Dagash said the World Bank provided $2.4, 44,750,000 out of the $2.826billion received during the period under review.
The minister added that credits fron African Development Bank, which contributed 10 per cent,decreased in 2006 but rose in 2007,.
Daggash said, �There is also quite a substantial amount of the bank�s support whose year of approval us unknown.
�AFDB annual assistance to Nigeria peaked in 2001 at about $52.9m. It did not support Nigeria in 2007.�
According to the report, water and sanitation, the biggest beneficiaries of the aids, gulped 25 per cent of the total amount.
Other areas the funds were channeled to, include energy, health, agriculture, solid minerals, poverty reduction, transport and rural development.
Dagashi said, �The institutions within the United Nations system have the biggest contribution, their collective budgeted and disbursed figures form 89 per cent ($5,593,285,438).�
Within the UN system, UNICEF contributed the highest sum of $1,346,093,278 out of the total amount disbursed.
Other higher donors include Department For International Development , $559,981,950; United States Agency for International Decelopment, $421,866,283; and European Union, $373,667,317.
On NGO�s support, the document stated that Africare, Oxfam and WaterAid had since 2001 provided $12,905,267.
Oxfam�s contribution was put at 47 per cent; WaterAid, 30 per cent; and Africare, 23 per cent;
The three NGOs had submitted data to the NPC.
From the credit or assistance from multilateral institutions, health projects enjoyed the highest propriety with 67 per cent, while 196 projects were executed in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
Kaduna State topped the list, with 10 projects, followed by Lagos State with nine; and Cross River State, eight.
Oyo, Imo, Bauchi and Enugu States had seven projects each.
On grants, Kano State topped the list of project beneficiaries with 42. It was followed by Lagos State which had 29.
Bauchi and Kaduna States had 25 projects each.
However, Dagash noted that most of the aids and grants were in the books of the donors.
His submission came after the committee summoned him to appear before it.
The committee demanded to know the total amount involved and beneficiaries.
Dagash argued that Nigeria needed more of such funds from donor agencies but warned that assistance could not be relied up to achieve its socio-economic dream.