Economy
BudgIT Urges Transparency as FG Defers 70% of 2025 Capital Projects to 2026
By Adedapo Adesanya
BudgIT, a leading civic-tech organisation promoting transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s public finance, has called on the federal government to be transparent after it deferred the implementation of 70 per cent of capital projects initially appropriated in the 2025 fiscal year to 2026.
“From our analysis, while this development is not entirely surprising, we hold cautious reservations about the implications of this decision,” it said in a statement.
The group said the deferment suggests the federal government intends to limit the number of capital projects under implementation, to use available funds more efficiently, prioritise critical projects, and reduce the long-standing problem of abandoned projects.
“In this sense, the move appears to be an attempt to retain the 2025 capital projects—many of which are based on existing economic plans and strategies—rather than introduce an entirely new set of projects in the next fiscal year.
“We view this as an effort by the federal government to restructure the sequencing of capital project implementation. Rather than rolling out a fresh budget filled with new capital projects, the government appears to be attempting a reset by carrying forward existing projects and improving implementation discipline,” it said.
BudgIT said this approach, if properly managed, could help salvage a challenging fiscal situation and strengthen budget credibility.
Recall that BudgIT has consistently raised concerns about Nigeria’s budgeting process, particularly the government’s failure to adhere to the approved budget calendar and its practice of running multiple fiscal programmes concurrently.
“We have maintained that budget timelines must be treated as sacrosanct and that unfinished but still relevant projects should be consolidated through a supplementary budget passed within the same fiscal year, rather than endlessly rolled over,” it said.
“Consequently, the continued inclusion of numerous uncoordinated and low-priority projects has bloated federal capital expenditure and increased public debt, often without clear developmental value.
“This pattern weakens the impact of capital investment, as spending decisions increasingly appear driven by project insertions rather than sound planning, prioritisation, and fiscal discipline. This is compounded by the fact that the federal government does not publish disaggregated reports on capital expenditure implementation. So, citizens are at a loss in knowing precisely what has or has not been implemented,” the statement added.
This challenge, it said, is further illustrated by developments during the 2024 fiscal year, in which the federal government extended the implementation of capital expenditure components of both the 2024 Appropriation Act and the 2024 supplementary Appropriation Act into mid-2025, and subsequently to December 2025.
“As a result, although the 2025 Appropriation Act was duly passed and assented to, it appears that only its recurrent components—such as personnel and overhead costs—were implemented in 2025. This is further evidenced by the absence of federal budget implementation reports for the 2025 period and official statements indicating that revenues from the 2025 fiscal year were used to fund the implementation of the 2024 budget.”
It revealed that it remains unclear whether the 2024 fiscal year has been formally closed.
“The recently published Q4 2024 federal budget implementation report is explicitly described as “provisional,” raising concerns about proper fiscal closure. Formal closure of fiscal accounts is essential, as failure to do so undermines financial reporting, fiscal transparency, and consolidation standards.”
In light of these, BudgIT stressed that this decision to defer capital project implementation must be robustly defended during the upcoming budget defence sessions at the National Assembly.
“The Executive arm of government must clearly demonstrate to the Legislature that this action is necessary to restore order to Nigeria’s fiscal framework and to end the damaging practice of implementing multiple budgets concurrently. By the time the annual Appropriation Act is passed by the National Assembly and transmitted for presidential assent, it is often heavily bloated with additional projects. While the National Assembly’s power to increase or decrease the budget is constitutionally recognised, BudgIT has long argued that this power has been widely abused, often disregarding fiscal planning and national development priorities.”
Commenting, BudgIT’s Deputy Country Director, Mr Vahyala Kwaga, underscored the need for discipline and clarity in implementing the deferment.
“Deferring 70 per cent of capital projects is neither a solution nor a setback on its own. What matters is whether this decision marks a clear break from the cycle of bloated budgets, overlapping fiscal years, and weak project implementation. Without strict adherence to budget timelines, proper fiscal closure, and transparent payment processes, the risk is that we simply postpone inefficiencies rather than resolve them,” Mr Kwaga said.
In addition, BudgIT urged the federal government to fully adhere to its “Bottom-Up Cash Plan” as outlined by the Federal Ministry of Finance.
“This approach—where payments are made directly to verified contractors rather than routed through MDAs—has the potential to improve efficiency and accountability in capital project implementation. The government must ensure strict compliance with payment protocols, contractor verification processes, and timely disbursement of funds.
“To this end, we call on the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, the Budget Office of the Federation, the Bureau of Public Procurement, relevant MDAs, and the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to uphold the principles of transparency, legal compliance, and accountability in the management of public funds and public projects.
“We also encourage citizens, civil society, the private sector, and the media to actively support and scrutinise capital expenditure implementation, as the benefits of effective public spending ultimately accrue to all Nigerians.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 2.30 per cent, spurring the NASD Security Index (NSI) to close higher by 96.61 points to 4,296.34 points from 4,199.73 points, and raising the market capitalisation by N57.99 billion to N2.578 trillion from N2.521 trillion.
The market was up yesterday despite a lower activity level, as the volume of securities traded slumped by 94.7 per cent to 1.3 million units from the previous 23.9 million units. The value of securities slipped by 57.2 per cent to N29.2 million from the preceding session’s N68.2 million, while the number of deals executed by market participants increased by 6.7 per cent to 32 deals from the 30 deals carried out on Thursday.
At the close of transactions, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with a turnover of 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion in trades, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc with 70.8 million units traded for N4.9 billion.
GNI Plc was also the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units exchanged for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
During the trading day, there were three price gainers and two price losers, led by Afriland Properties Plc, which shed N1.48 to sell at N15.17 per share compared with the previous session’s N16.65 per share, and Food Concepts Plc, which slid by 7 Kobo to close at N2.69 per unit versus N2.76 per unit.
Conversely, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved its value by N9.50 to trade at N150.00 per share compared with Thursday’s closing price of N140.50 per share, CSCS Plc went up by N7.95 to N89.65 per unit from N81.70 per unit, and 11 Plc soared by N6.94 to N206.95 per share from N200.01 per share.
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited lost its footing by 0.07 per cent on Friday as a result of renewed profit-taking by investors.
The fall happened after Thomas Wyatt and Guinness Nigeria led other price losers group comprising 27 stocks at the market yesterday due to selling pressure.
Thomas Wyatt Nigeria shed 10.00 per cent to quote at N2.70, Guinness Nigeria drowned by 9.99 per cent to close at N329.00, Ikeja Hotel slipped by 9.96 per cent to N42.50, Zichis shed 9.94 per cent to trade at N26.37, and McNichols depreciated by 9.91 per cent to N5.00.
On the flip side, International Breweries gained 9.92 per cent to finish at N13.30, NEM Insurance appreciated by 9.61 per cent to N27.95, Jaiz Bank grew by 6.36 per cent to N9.20, UPDC expanded by 6.33 per cent to N4.20, and Livestock Feeds increased by 6.32 per cent to N9.25.
Business Post reports that investor sentiment remained bullish despite the loss recorded during the session, as there were 27 price decliners and 30 price advancers, representing a positive market breadth index.
Yesterday, market participants transacted 441.3 million equities for N19.4 billion in 44,938 deals compared with the 1.7 billion equities worth N112.0 billion traded in 44,780 deals a day earlier. This showed that the trading volume contracted by 74.04 per cent, the trading value declined by 82.68 per cent, and an uptick in the number of deals by 0.35 per cent.
Access Holdings led the activity chart on Friday after selling 40.2 million shares valued at N1.0 billion, Sterling Holdco traded 30.3 million stocks worth N228.8 million, Fidelity Bank sold 26.3 million equities for N505.6 million, Zenith Bank transacted 22.3 million shares valued at N2.5 billion, and First Holdco exchanged 19.0 million stocks worth N1.3 billion.
During the last trading session of the week, the consumer goods sector rose by 0.49 per cent, the insurance counter increased by 0.06 per cent, and the industrial goods index closed flat, while the banking and energy indices lost 0.78 per cent and 0.52 per cent, respectively.
As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) shrank by 159.97 points to 243,798.76 points from 243,958.73 points, and the market capitalisation moderated by N103 billion to N156.445 trillion from N156.548 trillion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira performed poorly against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, July 10, losing N1.19 or 0.09 per cent to close at N1,379.62/$1, in contrast to Thursday’s exchange rate of N1,378.43/$1.
It also depreciated against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the trading session by N3.80 to trade at N1,850.62/£1 compared with the previous day’s N1,846.82/£1, but gained 43 Kobo on the Euro to sell at N1,575.66/€1 versus the preceding day’s N1,576.09/€1.
At the GTBank FX desk, the Naira weakened against the Dollar yesterday by N1 to quote at N1,386/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,835/$1, and maintained stability in the black market at N1.400/$1.
Data showed that interbank FX turnover fell by about 10 per cent on Friday to $71.044 million from $78.708 million the previous day. Also, interbank forex market deals reduced to 87 from 106 trades executed at the window on Thursday.
The total forex inflows into the Nigerian foreign exchange market have been fluctuating, with about $1 billion in total inflows reported last week.
Total FX inflows settled at $0.99 billion last week, according to the research subsidiary of Coronation Merchant Bank, with Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) accounting for the largest share at 35.81 per cent, or $0.35 billion.
Exporters accounted for 28.72 per cent or $0.28 billion, while the CBN contributed 11.15 per cent or $0.11 billion. Non-Bank Corporations also made up a notable 10.92 per cent of total inflows, reflecting continued support from both market-driven and official sources.
In the cryptocurrency market, Bitcoin rose above $64,100, retesting the price level that rejected it on Monday, with a clean break above, opening the path toward the June 15 high of $67,250. It gained 0.3 per cent to sell at $64,114.16.
Ethereum (ETH) appreciated by 1.6 per cent to $1,798.81, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.6 per cent to $0.0742, Binance Coin (BNB) added 0.6 per cent to sell for $576.47, Cardano (ADA) also grew by 0.6 per cent to $0.1674, and Ripple (XRP) jumped by 0.4 per cent to $1.10.
But Solana (SOL) lost 1.1 per cent to settle at $77.95, and TRON (TRX) declined by 0.2 per cent to $0.3296, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 apiece.
