The Federal Government on Friday said it may not be possible to achieve full implementation of the 2016 budget.

This was disclosed by the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udo Udoma, shortly after President Muhammadu Buhari signed the budget.

According to the minister, who was joined by the Minister of State, Zainab Ahmed, despite government’s intention to fully implement the document, the fact that almost half of the year is gone makes it impossible.

“Our aim is 100 percent implementation because the budget is a law that must be implemented. But the reality is that we may not achieve this because we are starting late,” Udoma told journalists.

To forestall a reoccurrence, the minister said the government is working to ensure that the National Assembly gets the 2017 budget by October, as this will allow its passage before the end of the year and give the government the opportunity to begin its implementation from January 2017.