President Bola Tinubu has presented the proposed 2026 Federal Budget, estimated at ₦58.18 trillion, on Friday, December 19, 2025.
The president, who arrived at the National Assembly complex on Friday afternoon, presented the budget titled “Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity” at a joint session of the National Assembly.
Breakdown of 2026 Budget
Tinubu said the capital expenditure is pegged at ₦26.08 trillion, the total revenue estimated to be ₦34.33 trillion, while ₦15.52 trillion will go for debt servicing, bringing the budget deficit to ₦23.85 trillion, which represents 4.28% of GDP.
He said the crude oil price benchmark is estimated at $64.85 per barrel, with a projected crude oil production of 1.84 million barrels per day.
For the exchange rate, ₦1,400 to the US Dollar was proposed for the 2026 fiscal year.
In terms of sectoral allocation, the president announced that ₦ 5.41 trillion has been earmarked for security, the highest, followed by ₦3.56 trillion allocated for infrastructure. Education received ₦3.52 trillion, while ₦2.48 trillion was allocated for health in the proposed budget.
The Nigerian leader emphasized that the budget is not mere numbers but “a statement of national priorities”, adding that his administration remains committed to “fiscal sustainability, debt transparency, and value‑for‑money spending.”
Justifying the reason for higher allocation to security, Tinubu said, “Security remains the foundation of development.”
“We will invest in security with clear accountability for outcomes because security spending must deliver security results,” he added.
Tinubu explained that the security vote would be used to modernize the armed forces, expand intelligence-driven police, improve border monitoring, and facilitate cooperative operations among security agencies.
Earlier, the Federal Executive Council had approved the 2026 budget framework at an emergency meeting presided over for the first time by Vice President Kashim Shettima.
The budget presentation followed the Senate’s approval of the 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP), a development that cleared the way for the presentation of the 2026 Appropriation Bill.
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The Senate approved the framework after considering a report by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa, during plenary on Tuesday. The MTEF and FSP had earlier received the endorsement of the Federal Executive Council at its meeting on December 3, 2025.
Despite a cautious outlook on global oil prices, the Senate retained crude oil production estimates of 1.84 million barrels per day for 2026, 1.88 million barrels per day for 2027 and 1.92 million barrels per day for 2028, citing confidence in ongoing reforms in the oil and gas sector.
Lawmakers also upheld real Gross Domestic Product growth projections of 4.68 per cent for 2026, 5.96 per cent for 2027 and 7.9 per cent for 2028, attributing the outlook to anticipated gains from tax reforms and broader economic restructuring.
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For the 2026 fiscal year, the Senate approved Federal Government retained revenue of N34.33 trillion, new borrowings of N17.88 trillion and debt servicing of N15.52 trillion, resulting in a fiscal deficit of N20.13 trillion.
The framework also provided N1.376 trillion for pensions, gratuities and retirees’ benefits; N20.131 trillion for capital expenditure excluding transfers; N3.152 trillion for statutory transfers; and N388.54 billion for the Sinking Fund.
Total recurrent non-debt expenditure was pegged at N15.265 trillion, while special intervention funds for recurrent and capital spending were set at N200 billion and N14 billion, respectively.
As of Wednesday, the House of Representatives had yet to approve the budget framework.
Rafiyat Sadiq is a political, justice, and human rights reporter with Pinnacle Daily, known for fearless reporting and impactful storytelling. At Pinnacle Daily, she brings clarity and depth to issues shaping governance, democracy, and the protection of citizens’ rights.
