President Bola Tinubu | File photo
President Bola Tinubu says only about 17 percent of the 2025 capital budget, equivalent to N3.1 trillion, was released by the third quarter (Q3).
Presenting the 2026 budget on Friday to the national assembly, Tinubu explained that the low implementation of the 2025 capital budget is due to the focus on completing priority 2024 projects during the transition period.
The president said that as of June 2025, N2.23 trillion was released for 2024 capital projects, following the extension of the 2024 budget execution to December 2025.
He said the 2025 budget implementation faced the realities of transition and competing execution demands.
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Tinubu noted revenue for the year was N18.6 trillion, representing 61 percent of the target, and expenditure of N24.66 trillion, representing 60 percent of the target.
“Let me be clear: 2026 will be a year of stronger discipline in budget execution,” the president said.
“I have issued directives to the honourable minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, the honourable minister of budget and economic planning, the accountant‑general of the federation, and the director‑general of the budget office of the federation to ensure that the 2026 budget is implemented strictly in line with the appropriated details and timelines.
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“We expect improved revenue performance through the new National Tax Acts and the ongoing reforms in the oil and gas sector—reforms designed not merely to raise revenue, but to drive transparency, efficiency, fairness, and long‑term value in our fiscal architecture.”
Tinubu asked government-owned enterprises (GOEs) to meet revenue targets, announcing the digitisation of revenue mobilisation to curb leakages and boost performance.
“I will also be unequivocal about government‑owned enterprises. Heads of all GOEs are hereby directed to meet their assigned revenue targets,” he said.
“To support this, we will deploy end‑to‑end digitisation of revenue mobilisation—standardised e‑collections, interoperable payment rails, automated reconciliation, data‑driven risk profiling, and real‑time performance dashboards—so leakages are sealed, compliance is verifiable, and remittances are prompt.”
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The president added that the targets will form core components of performance evaluations and institutional scorecards.
Tinubu reiterated that Nigeria can no longer afford leakages, inefficiencies, or underperformance in strategic agencies, and every institution must play its part.
The senate on Wednesday considered a bill seeking to repeal and re-enact the 2024/2025 Appropriations Act, proposing a revised budget of N43.56 trillion.
Tinubu had earlier transmitted the Appropriation, Repeal, and Re-enactment Bill 2024 to the national assembly for consideration earlier in the day.
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