Error Forces National Assembly To Raise 2025 Budget Recurrent Vote, Cut Capital Spending

The National Assembly on Tuesday reviewed the recently passed 2025 budget, making adjustments that reduced the capital expenditure component while increasing recurrent expenditure.

Naijaonpoint understands that lawmakers explained that the review was necessary due to errors identified in the budget figures previously approved. Despite the adjustments, the overall budget size remains ₦54.99 trillion.

The review resulted in a reduction of over ₦500 billion in capital expenditure, with a corresponding increase in recurrent expenditure.

During plenary sessions in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, corrections were made to figures allocated to various ministries, departments, and agencies, with some allocations increased and others decreased.

Presenting the motion for the review, Chairman of the House Committee on Rules and Business, Francis Waive (APC, Delta), stated that the Joint Appropriation Committee had discovered discrepancies in the figures passed earlier.

He clarified that while the total budget size (₦54.99 trillion), statutory transfers (₦3.64 trillion), and debt servicing allocation (₦14.32 trillion) remain unchanged, adjustments were made to the recurrent (non-debt) expenditure of ₦13.56 trillion and the capital budget of ₦23.44 trillion.

Among the agencies whose budget allocations were reduced are the Ministries of Defence and Police Affairs, the National Pension Commission, Universities Pensions, the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (civilian pensions), and the Pension Transition Arrangement Directorate.

Conversely, increased allocations were made to the Presidency, Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation, Office of the National Security Adviser, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, as well as the Federal Ministries of Agriculture and Food Security, Works, Labour and Employment, Transportation, Innovation, Science and Technology, Education, Environment, and Health and Social Welfare, among others.

Waive emphasized that it was the responsibility of the House to correct the identified errors in the budget document compiled by the Joint Committee.

He assured that the rescission and passage of the revised allocations would not affect the overall ₦54.99 trillion budget size.