The 36 state governments will soon begin to enjoy the benefits of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Tuesday released guidelines for the operation of TSA by state governments.
The Federal Government has been able to consolidate its account with a balance of N2.2 trillion daily with the policy.
The TSA, according to CBN, would be a major component of financial and treasury management reforms to be undertaken by the states.
The new circular posted on the Central Bank’s website explained that it drew up the guidelines “to provide state governments with a clear framework to support their successful implementation of the TSA initiative based on standardized banking arrangements, operational processes and IT infrastructure.”
An essential requirement for operating the TSA by states is that government agencies are not to operate any bank account under any guise outside the purview and oversight of the treasury.
In addition, under the policy, the consolidation of government cash resources should be comprehensive and encompass all government budgetary and extra-budgetary funds.
The banking sector regulator defined the two TSA models as: The main TSA and associated ledger sub-accounts (where they exist) are to be maintained in a single banking institution; or the main TSA maintained in a single banking institution and associated zero balance ledger sub-accounts (ZBAs) (where they exist) are maintained in other institutions from where balances are swept daily to the main TSA in CBN or the appointed main TSA hosting financial institution.
“Each state government shall select any TSA model of its choice. The choice of a TSA model shall be informed and guided by the availability of clear operational processes and basic technology infrastructure that supports the implementation of the model of choice.
“Each state government shall inform the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria of its decision to introduce the TSA scheme, detailing: the state’s preferred TSA model (banking structure) and level of preparedness to commence, operate and support the scheme, which shall include, but not limited to, project organisation and resourcing, operational process workflow, available technology infrastructure, etc.
“Each state government shall maintain contractual agreement(s) with parties involved in the design, delivery and ongoing support of its TSA scheme. Such agreement shall clearly define the terms and the roles and responsibilities of the state government and the relevant parties,” it added.
-Leadership