By Caroline Ameh
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Friday presented the 2026 Appropriation Bill to a joint sitting of the National Assembly, pledging stricter discipline in budget execution, stronger accountability and enhanced monitoring of public spending in the new fiscal year.
The budget, titled “Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity,” seeks to entrench recent economic reforms, stabilise macroeconomic conditions and convert recovery gains into sustained, inclusive growth.
Addressing lawmakers, the President said he had directed key fiscal authorities—including the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Director-General of the Budget Office—to enforce strict adherence to the approved budget framework and implementation timelines.
“2026 will mark a turning point in budget execution. We will demand accountability, rigorous monitoring and reporting that translate policy into measurable outcomes for Nigerians,” Tinubu said.
The President said the budget was formulated against a backdrop of emerging macroeconomic stability, following what he described as difficult but necessary policy adjustments implemented by his administration.
He reported that Nigeria’s economy expanded by 3.98 per cent in the third quarter of 2025, up from 3.86 per cent in the corresponding period of 2024, while inflation declined for eight consecutive months to 14.45 per cent in November 2025, from 24.23 per cent in March.
Tinubu further cited improved crude oil output, stronger non-oil revenue mobilisation driven by tax administration reforms, rising investor confidence and external reserves estimated at $47 billion, sufficient to cover more than 10 months of imports.
“These results reflect deliberate policy choices. The task before us is to consolidate these gains so that stability evolves into prosperity and prosperity is broadly shared,” he said.
Reviewing the performance of the 2025 budget, the President said the government realised ₦18.6 trillion in revenue and ₦24.66 trillion in expenditure by the third quarter, representing 61 per cent and 60 per cent of their respective annual targets.
He attributed delays in capital releases partly to the extension of the 2024 capital budget into 2025, noting that the experience highlighted the need for firmer fiscal discipline in the 2026 budget cycle.
For 2026, the President projected total revenue of ₦34.33 trillion and total expenditure of ₦58.18 trillion, including ₦15.52 trillion earmarked for debt servicing.
Recurrent non-debt expenditure is estimated at ₦15.25 trillion, while capital expenditure is projected at ₦26.08 trillion. The resulting budget deficit of ₦23.85 trillion, he said, represents 4.28 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Underlying the projections are assumptions of a crude oil price benchmark of $64.85 per barrel, daily production of 1.84 million barrels, and an exchange rate of ₦1,400 to the US dollar.
The budget prioritises national security, infrastructure development and human capital investment, with proposed allocations of ₦5.41 trillion for defence and security, ₦3.56 trillion for infrastructure, ₦3.52 trillion for education and ₦2.48 trillion for health.
Tinubu said security spending would be outcome-based, aligned with the implementation of a new national counter-terrorism doctrine and expanded intelligence-led operations.
On education, he referenced the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, which has supported more than 418,000 students across 229 tertiary institutions, while noting that healthcare expenditure represents six per cent of total budgetary spending, net of liabilities.
The President warned government-owned enterprises to meet their revenue remittance obligations, announcing plans to deploy digitised revenue collection systems to curb leakages and strengthen fiscal transparency.
“A budget’s true value lies not in its announcement, but in its execution,” Tinubu said, pledging prudent expenditure management, enhanced revenue mobilisation and tighter oversight.
He urged the National Assembly to support the proposals, expressing confidence that effective executive-legislative collaboration would ensure successful implementation.
The President subsequently laid the 2026 Appropriation Bill before the National Assembly for legislative consideration.
