The Federal Government has paid a total amount of $5.4billion to states for the settlement of the Paris Club Refund.

Disclosing this to newsmen in Abuja on Monday, the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed said the money when converted based on the ₦305 per dollar official exchange rate of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) amounts to about ₦1.65 trillion.

The Paris Club Refund was released to states in phases based on some conditions which include the affected state’s commitment to the repayment of Budget Support Loans granted in 2016 and clearing of amounts due to the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative.

Other conditions are a commitment to clearing matching grants from the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) which could be used to improve primary education.