.targets stability, job creation, shared prosperity
By Our Reporter
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Friday presented before the National Assembly a ₦58.18 trillion 2026 Appropriation Bill for passage into law, saying that the proposal was designed to lock in macroeconomic stability, deepen competitiveness and ensure that growth translates into jobs, higher incomes and improved living standards for Nigerians.
President Tinubu, while presenting the budget, themed: "Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity," at a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives, declared the proposal as a decisive step from economic survival to sustainable growth as the country consolidates reforms undertaken over the past two and a half years.
Tinubu acknowledged that the reform path had been difficult, with households and businesses feeling the strain of tough policy choices, but quickly assured citizens that the sacrifices were yielding results as he disclosed that the economy grew by 3.98 per cent in the third quarter of 2025, inflation moderated for eight consecutive months to 14.45 per cent in November, external reserves climbed to a seven-year high of about $47 billion, while oil output and non-oil revenues improved on the back of security and tax reforms.
According to him, these outcomes are not accidental, but are the result of deliberate and sometimes painful policy decisions, saying that the task now was to deepen these gains and deliver enduring, inclusive prosperity.
Presenting the document, President Tinubu said the 2026 Budget projects total revenue of ₦34.33 trillion against total expenditure of ₦58.18 trillion, including ₦15.52 trillion for debt servicing, noting that Capital expenditure is pegged at ₦26.08 trillion, recurrent (non-debt) spending at ₦15.25 trillion, while the fiscal deficit of ₦23.85 trillion represents 4.28 per cent of GDP.
The president explained that the figures reflected national priorities rather than "mere accounting lines," assuring that his administration remained committed to fiscal sustainability, debt transparency and value-for-money spending.
He said budget assumptions were based on a conservative oil price benchmark of $64.85 per barrel, daily production of 1.84 million barrels, and an average exchange rate of ₦1,400 to the dollar, declaring that a major focus of the proposal is tighter discipline in budget execution.
Tinubu said he had directed key economic officials to ensure strict implementation of the 2026 Budget in line with approved details and timelines as, according to him, government-owned enterprises would be compelled to meet revenue targets through end-to-end digital revenue collection and real-time monitoring to block leakages.
President Tinubu, while outlining priorities in the budget proposal, said it was guided by four objectives, namely: consolidating macroeconomic stability, improving the business and investment climate, promoting job-rich growth to reduce poverty, and strengthening human capital while protecting the vulnerable.
He earmarked N5.41trn for security, the single largest allocation in the proposed 2026 Budget, ahead of infrastructure, education and health, reaffirming a pattern established in the 2024 and 2025 budgets, where security consistently attracted the highest sectoral funding amid persistent threats from terrorism, banditry and kidnapping, declaring pointedly that national security remained the foundation of economic growth, investment and social stability.
Other sectoral allocations include ₦₦3.56 trillion for infrastructure, ₦3.52 trillion for education and ₦2.48 trillion for health.
The president said security spending would focus on modernising the armed forces, intelligence-driven policing, border surveillance and community peacebuilding, alongside a reset of the national counter-terrorism architecture to decisively confront banditry, kidnapping and other violent crimes.
"Without security, investment will not thrive. Without educated and healthy citizens, productivity will not rise. Without infrastructure, jobs and enterprises will not scale," he said.
On human capital, President Tinubu highlighted expanded access to tertiary education through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, which he said had supported over 788,000 students, even as noted an increased healthcare spending amounting to six per cent of the budget net of liabilities.
He also disclosed that recent engagements with the United States Government had opened the door to more than $500 million in health interventions.
The president called on the lawmakers to support the proposal, arguing that the budget was designed to consolidate recent economic gains, while restoring public confidence in the state’s ability to protect lives and property.
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