The Federal Government has poured cold water on allegations it spent more than ₦8.8 trillion, representing about two per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), outside the approved budget.
The government described the allegations as false and a misrepresentation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s 2026 Article IV Consultation Report.
In a statement issued on Sunday in Abuja and made available to VDCInsights the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said the Federal Government does not operate a “shadow budget” or expend public funds outside the constitutional and statutory framework governing public finance.
Oyedele explained that under Sections 80–83 and 162 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), public funds can only be withdrawn and spent in accordance with the Constitution and laws enacted by the National Assembly.
He stated that government expenditure was spent only through duly enacted Appropriation Acts, Supplementary Appropriation Acts and other statutory authorities, while multi-year capital projects are implemented in line with existing laws and approved capital rollover provisions.
The minister said it was misleading to suggest that N8.8trn had been secretly spent without legislative approval, stressing that such claims should be backed by verifiable evidence identifying specific projects allegedly executed outside the law.
He explained that the country’s public finance framework includes statutory transfers, first-line charges and intervention mechanisms established by Acts of the National Assembly, including allocations to development commissions, debt service obligations, revenue collection costs, Federal Capital Territory budgets and special interventions for security, infrastructure and disaster response.
Oloyede said these expenditures are lawful, publicly disclosed in fiscal reports and subject to oversight and audit, adding that differences in their presentation under international reporting standards should not be interpreted as evidence of illegal spending.
He also rejected claims that the reported amount represented an increase in the country’s fiscal deficit, explaining that fiscal deficits are determined by the relationship between total government revenue and expenditure, not by the financing mechanism used for approved projects.
The minister pointed out that the IMF’s observations primarily relates to the comprehensiveness, timing and presentation of fiscal reporting rather than the legality of government expenditure, noting that Nigeria is continuing reforms to align its fiscal reporting with international standards.
He recalled that President Bola Tinubu had, during the presentation of the 2026 Appropriation Bill on December 19, 2025, requested the National Assembly to end the practice of operating multiple and overlapping budgets by harmonising them into a single framework.
Oyedele said ongoing reforms had strengthened budget credibility, revenue administration, treasury management and the digitalisation of government financial processes.
