Economy
Nigeria’s 2018 Budget Can’t Stimulate Economic Growth—Moody’s
By Dipo Olowookere
Renowned global rating agency, Moody’s Investors Services Limited, has disclosed that the capital expenditure part of the 2018 budget signed into law last month by President Muhammadu Buhari cannot be fully implemented by federal government.
In November 2017, Mr Buhari submitted a budget of N8.6 trillion to the National Assembly. However, when it was passed by the parliament in May 2018, it was raised to N9.1 trillion.
This did not augur well with the President, who told Nigerians that he reluctantly signed by the budget into law because he did not want it to delay any longer.
In a chat with Thisday, Moody’s Senior Analytical Advisor for Africa, Mr Aurélien Mali, stressed that only about 50 percent of the capital expenditure can be implemented by government.
The 2018 budget provides N2.01 trillion for debt service, N3.51 trillion for recurrent expenditure and N2.87 trillion for capital expenditure, up from N2.36 trillion in 2017.
The capital spending accounted for 31.5 percent of total federal government expenditure in 2018.
According to Mr Mali, the perennial delays in passing the country’s budget for three years in a row was a demonstration of the institutional weakness in the country.
He said, “Budget is very important for allocation of resources and infrastructure development in the economy. So, delays to such an extent, three years in a row, is very unfortunate.
“To be perfectly clear, it was a large budget, but everybody knows that even though in nominal terms the capital expenditure increased, it is going to be under-realised and around 50 percent mostly.
“So, the numbers are big, but the reality is that the budget objective is going to be lower than expected in terms of revenue. So, that mechanism is not efficient enough to drive development in Nigeria.”
According to him, for the budget to be used as a tool for stimulating economic growth, implementation of capital expenditure has to be at about 90 percent.
Commenting on a recent Brookings Institution report that revealed that Nigeria had overtaken India as the country with the highest number of extremely poor persons in the world, Mr Mali said alleviating poverty in Nigeria would be very difficult as long as the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) remains below its demographic trend.
He said, “As long as Nigeria continues to grow below six per cent, the poverty level is not going to change, and the standard of living is not going to improve.
“So, you will continue to have income inequality that will continue to increase and overall it is going to be difficult to improve GDP per capita. There is still fragility in Nigeria’s economic recovery.
“While in Nigeria it seems the situation has stabilised, the reliance on hydrocarbon in the country would still pose challenges over the medium term if some reforms are not implemented.
“The revenue generation capacity will still be a weakness because the non-oil revenue remains weak in Nigeria.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The pre-registration training and examination for capital market operators (CMOs) for the second quarter of 2026 has been postponed.
Business Post gathered that the new date for the exercise is now Monday, June 15, 2026.
This information was disclosed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) through a circular on Monday, June 8, 2026.
The Nigerian capital market regulator stated that this postponement has also resulted in the extension of the deadline for registration to Friday, June 12, 2026.
In the notice today, the SEC expressed its regret for the inconvenience this action may cause operators, who had prepared for the initial date of the training and examination.
“Further to the recent circular on Q2 2026 Pre-registration Training and Examination, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) hereby informs all eligible applicants for the Q2 2026 Pre-registration Training and Examination that the commencement date has been postponed to Monday, June 15, 2026.
“Registration on the designated portal has also been extended to Friday, June 12, 2026. All other conditions contained in the circular remain unchanged.
“The commission regrets any inconvenience this postponement may cause and appreciates the understanding of all applicants,” the disclosure noted.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
One of the leading healthcare firms in Nigeria, Fidson Healthcare Plc, has listed additional shares on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The new stocks absorbed into the stock market were 600 million units, raising the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Fidson to 3,000,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each from 2,400,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.
The fresh equities came from the company’s rights issue of 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N35.00 per share.
They were issued to existing investors on the basis of one new ordinary share for every existing four ordinary shares held as of the close of business on Wednesday, November 12, 2025.
Confirming the development, the regulator in a notice said, “Trading licence holders are hereby notified that an additional 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of Fidson Healthcare Plc were on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
“The additional shares arose from the company’s rights issue of 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N35.00 per share on the basis of one new ordinary share for every existing four ordinary shares held as at the close of business on Wednesday, November 12, 2025.
“With the listing of the additional 600,000,000 ordinary shares, the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Fidson Healthcare Plc have now increased from 2,400,000,000 to 3,000,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
This news will surely excite local contractors with verified claims of N100 million or less, as the federal government has approved their payments.
This approval for the disbursement was given by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele.
This followed a verification and reconciliation exercise designed to ensure only validated claims qualify for payment.
The beneficiaries cover contractors across multiple ministries, departments and agencies. The release of the funds is expected to enable contractors to return to project sites, pay workers, settle suppliers and meet outstanding financial commitments.
In an announcement on Monday, the Federal Ministry of Finance also said this latest batch of payments would ease liquidity pressure on small businesses and accelerate economic activity nationwide.
It was noted that the payments for verified claims of N100 million below were strategically done to spread economic impact broadly rather than concentrate disbursements among a handful of large firms.
The payments form part of a broader push to clear inherited contractor obligations, with over N700 billion verified in recent months.
“For many beneficiaries, the release of funds represents more than a financial transaction. It provides the certainty needed to sustain operations, preserve jobs, complete ongoing projects, and contribute to economic recovery and growth,” the ministry said in a statement.
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