THE Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved a ₦58.47 trillion 2026 appropriation bill and an amendment to the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), clearing the way for President Bola Tinubu to transmit the budget to the National Assembly.
The meeting held earlier on Friday, December 19, was chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, who addressed newsmen after the meeting, said the budget consideration and approval for onward transmission to the legislature topped the agenda for the meeting.
The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu, also informed that the Council approved a downward revision of the exchange rate assumption in the MTEF from ₦1,512/$ to ₦1,400/$, with consequential adjustments to the overall budget size.
According to him, the proposals were earlier presented by the Ministry of Budget and the Budget Office and reviewed by members of the Federal Executive Council before approval.
Providing further details, the Director-General of the Budget Office, Tanimu Yakubu, said aggregate expenditure for 2026 was projected at ₦58.47 trillion, representing a six per cent increase over the 2025 budget estimate.
He explained that the figure includes ₦4.98 trillion in projected spending by government-owned enterprises (GOEs) and ₦1.37 trillion for grant- and donor-funded projects.
A breakdown of the spending plan shows statutory transfers of ₦4.1 trillion and debt service of ₦15.52 trillion, which includes ₦3.188 trillion for the sinking fund to retire maturing bonds issued to local contractors and creditors. Personnel costs, including pensions, are estimated at ₦10.75 trillion, incorporating ₦1.02 trillion for GOEs and reflecting a seven per cent increase over the 2025 provision.
Overhead costs are projected at ₦2.22 trillion, while capital expenditure stands at ₦25.68 trillion, about 1.8 per cent lower than the 2025 capital allocation and reflecting what officials described as a more conservative approach focused on completing ongoing projects.
Capital allocation priorities include ₦11.3 trillion for ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), ₦2.052 trillion for multilateral and bilateral loans, and ₦1.8 trillion as the capital component of the Development Levy.
Yakubu said the 2026 budget was designed to balance macroeconomic stabilisation with the development objectives of the current administration.
He noted that budget assumptions were conservative and realistic, particularly on oil price, exchange rate and GOE dividends.
While revenues are projected to decline year-on-year, he said non-oil revenues would account for about two-thirds of total receipts, underscoring a structural shift away from oil dependence. Corporate income tax, value-added tax, customs duties and independent revenues are expected to remain the main fiscal anchors.
According to the Budget Office, expenditure growth is driven largely by debt service, wages and pensions rather than discretionary expansion, while the larger deficit reflects legacy fiscal rigidities rather than policy loosening. Financing of the deficit will rely mainly on domestic borrowing, complemented by concessional multilateral loans.
An earlier report by The ICIR revealed that there were doubts over 2026 budget projections after the Federal Government admitted that it realised just ₦10 trillion out of the ₦40 trillion revenue targeted for the 2025 fiscal year.
Harrison Edeh is a journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, always determined to drive advocacy for good governance through holding public officials and businesses accountable.