The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Friday approved a ₦58.47 trillion budget proposal for the 2026 fiscal year, paving the way for its presentation to a joint session of the National Assembly by President Bola Tinubu.
The Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Mr Tanimu Yakubu, disclosed this while briefing journalists after the FEC meeting held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Yakubu explained that within the reviewed 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP), the total size of the budget stands at ₦54.46 trillion, with retained revenue estimated at ₦34.33 trillion.
According to him, aggregate expenditure in the 2026 proposal is about six per cent higher than the 2025 budget estimate. The spending framework includes ₦4.98 trillion in projected expenditure by government-owned enterprises and ₦1.37 trillion for grants and donor-funded projects.
He added that the projected aggregate spending also covers statutory transfers of ₦4.1 trillion, debt service of ₦15.52 trillion including ₦3.39 trillion for the sinking fund to retire maturing obligations to local contractors and creditors personnel costs and pensions of ₦10.75 trillion, and overhead costs estimated at ₦2.22 trillion.
Yakubu noted that personnel costs, including pensions, are seven per cent higher than the 2025 provision and include ₦1.02 trillion allocated to government-owned enterprises.
He said the 2026 budget reflects a deliberate balance between macroeconomic stabilisation, development priorities and the medium-term fiscal framework, stressing that key assumptions on oil price, exchange rate and dividends from government-owned enterprises were conservative and realistic.
“The revenues decline year on year, but non-oil revenues now account for roughly two-thirds of total receipts, confirming a structural shift away from oil dependence,” Yakubu said. He added that corporate income tax, value-added tax, customs duties and independent revenues remain the main fiscal anchors.
He further explained that expenditure growth is driven largely by debt service, wages and pensions rather than discretionary expansion, while capital spending has been marginally reduced to prioritise completion of ongoing projects and ensure value for money.
“The larger deficit reflects policy loosening. Financing relies mainly on domestic borrowing, complemented by concessional multilateral loans,” he said.
Earlier, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, confirmed that FEC considered and approved both the 2026 budget proposal and amendments to the MTEF. He said the amendments included a downward revision of the exchange rate assumption from ₦1,512 to ₦1,400, with consequential changes to the overall budget size.
Also speaking, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, said the 2026 budget was thoroughly reviewed and discussed by council members following presentations by the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning and the Director-General of the Budget Office.
He said the approval cleared the way for the budget to be transmitted to the National Assembly for legislative consideration.
