MDAs inject ₦3.5tn New Projects in 2026 Budget Despite FG’s Freeze
MDAs inject ₦3.5tn New Projects in 2026 Budget Despite FG’s Freeze
An analysis of the 2026 Appropriation Bill has revealed that Federal Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) injected approximately N3.50 trillion for new projects into the budget.
This move directly defies a Federal Government directive that explicitly froze the commencement of new capital projects for the 2026 fiscal year to prioritize the completion of existing ones.
The N3.50 trillion figure, which includes central “Service-Wide Votes,” accounts for about 15.09 percent of the total proposed capital expenditure.
Despite the government’s instruction to carry over 70 percent of 2025’s capital allocations into the new year, the 2026 proposal contains over 400 new project lines across various sectors.
High-profile inclusions include N210.53 billion for new transport consultancy and bus terminals, N15 billion for a National Blood Service center, and billions more for defense housing and youth empowerment materials.
These additions come at a time when the federal budget is already facing a record deficit of over N20 trillion.
Financial experts and economists have raised concerns over this lack of fiscal discipline, warning that it undermines the government’s goal of economic consolidation.
They argue that sneaking new projects into the budget while thousands of older ones remain unfinished creates a disorganized fiscal environment and threatens the successful implementation of the “Budget of Consolidation.”
