About 78 Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government set aside nearly N400bn in the 2026 budget for the construction and rehabilitation of community halls, mosques, traditional rulers’ palaces, village market squares and civic centres, The PUNCH findings show.

More than half of the N400bn was earmarked for non-developmental projects such as the supply of grains and motorcycles, sponsorship of community thrift societies, construction of museums and mini-stadia, as well as the supply of tricycles, popularly called ‘Keke Marwa’, to communities.

Some of the MDAs investigated are the Ministry of Defence Headquarters, the Nigerian Air Force, Air Power Centre of Excellence, Nigerian Defence Academy, Technical Aid Corps, Foreign Mission, Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation, Federal College of Land Resources, Owerri, Institute of Agricultural Research and Training, Ibadan, and the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation.

Others are the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi, National Building and Road Research Institute, National Productivity Centre, Industrial Arbitration Panel, Industrial Training Fund, National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services, Zaria, Federal Cooperative College, Kaduna, among many others.

Critics argue that many of the projects earmarked do not rank among the country’s most urgent priorities, given Nigeria’s fiscal realities.

Analysts argue that the allocation of hundreds of billions of naira to numerous small and often low-impact projects deprives millions of Nigerians of the benefits of strategic public investment.

They contend that funds tied up in fragmented projects could instead be channelled into critical sectors such as healthcare, education, security, roads, power and other essential infrastructure that have a broader and more lasting impact on economic growth and citizens’ well-being.

According to the analysts, the proliferation of these relatively insignificant projects not only weakens fiscal discipline but also limits the government’s ability to deliver quality public services.

They warn that the opportunity cost is enormous, as scarce public resources are diverted from transformational national priorities to projects that frequently lack transparency, adequate oversight, or measurable developmental impact.

Experts have also expressed concern that several budget items with little or no connection to the statutory responsibilities of certain MDAs were inserted into their allocations.

For instance, the National Building and Road Research Institute, Lagos, has bizarre projects inserted into its budget, including the construction of village halls in Akukwa, Anambra State; the building of an international market in Birniwa, Jigawa State; the construction of traditional rulers’ palaces at Sarkin Wuse, Osokodoko and Osana in Rivers State; as well as the construction and refurbishment of the palace of the Agbana of Isanlu in Kogi State.

Others are the provision of market stalls in Gubio, construction of a multipurpose hall in Sanga, Kaduna State, as well as the remodelling of five mosques at Izalla (Kebbi), Zawiya Centre (Kebbi), Ikole (Ekiti), and Mangadu and Samani (Jigawa). These items cost over N4bn in the 2026 budget, yet have nothing in return for the Federal Government, analysts warn.

Similarly, the National Productivity Centre’s budget contains unusual items such as support for Ijaw musicians, construction of an Emir’s palace in Nguru/Yusufari/Machina/Karasuwa in Yobe State, construction of an econometrics laboratory in Ekiti State, construction and refurbishment of Obas’ palaces at Ado Odo, Yewa and Ajilefe in Ogun State, as well as the construction of an abattoir in Akko, Gombe State.

The National Mathematical Centre, Nigeria’s apex institution for mathematical research and training, will finance the construction of a Sociology Department building at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, which many say falls outside the agency’s core mandate.

Consultant economist and former central banker, Chukwunonso Ihuma, blamed the two chambers of the National Assembly for the situation. “All these are down to poor oversight by the National Assembly. In most cases, they are even the ones inserting, smuggling and padding these budgets,” he said.

He explained that the National Assembly often raises budgets sent to it by MDAs but seizes the opportunity to insert projects that make little or no impact on Nigerians.

“This explains why we have to go back to zero budgeting. We have to start from scratch. The Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation should have the powers to discard any item that has no relevance to Nigerians.

“Markets are naturally meant to be handled by subnationals such as states and local governments, and traditional rulers should fix their palaces. Civic centres are projects done by village unions. If I were the president, I would give each MDA money per item,” he argued.

A zero budget is a financial planning method where all expenses must be justified from scratch for each new period, rather than simply adjusting previous budgets, according to Investopedia, an investment dictionary.

In April, President Bola Tinubu assented to the 2026 Appropriation Bill, which provides for aggregate expenditure of N68.32tn. He also signed the bill extending the implementation period for the 2025 budget from March 31, 2026, to June 30, 2026.

In July, the Senate approved a three-month extension for the implementation of the capital component of the 2025 Appropriation Act, moving the deadline from June 30 to September 30, 2026. This, according to lawmakers, was aimed at preventing project abandonment and ensuring full utilisation of already released public funds across MDAs. This means the nation is still implementing last year’s budget seven months into 2026.

The Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research said that “the successful implementation of the 2025 budget requires effective fiscal-monetary coordination, improved revenue mobilisation, and structural reforms to tackle inflation, exchange rate volatility, and social inequalities, while enhancing economic diversification and governance.”

The Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, Dr Muda Yusuf, said the stoppage of Ways and Means has created a big hole for the current government, noting that the government is struggling to adjust the budget or look for revenue to fill the gap.

Ways and Means implies the government drawing money from the central bank when in need of funds. Under former President, the late Gen Muhammadu Buhari, the nation’s Ways and Means rose to N30tn. Ways and Means have since been securitised.

The 2026 budget assumptions have been described by analysts as unrealistic. It assumes revenue of N36.87tn, leaving a substantial deficit to be covered through borrowing. The oil price was revised to $75 per barrel, up from the initial $64.85, while the oil production target was put at 1.84 million barrels per day.

GDP growth was estimated at between 4.28 per cent and 4.68 per cent, while debt servicing was put at N15.81tn. “We have to make a change and turn a new leaf. We did not have realistic projections in the budget, so the disparity is getting too big,” he said.

“Perhaps, we can begin to rely on experts to give us budgets that we have the capacity to handle. We are still struggling with the 2025 budget, yet we are still talking about the 2026 budget. Poor budgeting erodes the confidence of stakeholders, and some of the items are statutorily meant for states and local governments.”

Umar Sani, a media strategist and former adviser to Vice President Umar Sambo, said: “Even when you have such projects in the budget, the executive sometimes do not implement them, which explains why the legislators sometimes protest that certain aspects of the budget are not implemented.”

He explained that good leaders have, on several occasions, turned down budgets riddled with insignificant items. “So many things were brought to Buhari and Jonathan, but they did not sign them. This has been the case.” (The PUNCH)

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