President Bola Tinubu has presented a budget proposal of ₦58.1 trillion for the 2026 fiscal year to a joint session of the National Assembly, with capital recurrent (non‑debt) expenditure standing at ₦15.25 trillion.
Tinubu presented it on Friday, pegging the capital expenditure at ₦26.08 trillion and putting the crude oil benchmark at US$64.85 per barrel.
He said the expected total revenue is ₦34.33 trillion; ₦15.52 trillion for debt servicing. The budget deficit is ₦23.85 trillion, representing 4.28% of GDP.
The proposal was anchored on a crude oil production of 1.84 million barrels per day, and an exchange rate of ₦1,400 to the US Dollar for the 2026 fiscal year.
‘National Priorities’
In terms of sectoral allocation, defence and security took the lion’s share with ₦ 5.41 trillion, followed by infrastructure at ₦3.56 trillion.
Education received ₦3.52 trillion, while health received ₦2.48 trillion in the proposal, titled “Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity”.
Addressing the lawmakers, the former governor of Lagos State described the budget proposal as not “just accounting lines”.
“They are a statement of national priorities,” the president told the gathering. “We remain firmly committed to fiscal sustainability, debt transparency, and value‑for‑money spending.”
A Commitment to Security
The presentation came at a time of heightened insecurity in parts of the country, with mass abductions and other crimes making headlines.
Outlining his government’s plan to address the challenge, Tinubu, 73, reminded the gathering that security “remains the foundation of development”.
He said some of the measures in place to tame insecurity include the modernisation of the Armed Forces, intelligence‑driven policing and joint operations, border security, and technology‑enabled surveillance and community‑based peacebuilding and conflict prevention.
“We will invest in security with clear accountability for outcomes—because security spending must deliver security results,” the president, who swept to power in 2023, said in his address.
“To secure our country, our priority will remain on increasing the fighting capability of our armed forces and other security agencies by boosting personnel and procuring cutting-edge platforms and other hardware.”
On assumption of office in May 2023, President Tinubu removed the subsidy on fuel, leading to the escalation of the cost of the essential item. His administration, in the same year, floated the naira. Both moves led to a spike in inflation.
More than two years down the line, the president believes the economy has stabilised, assuring Nigerians of better days ahead.
“I acknowledge these difficulties plainly, and I assure Nigerians that their sacrifices are not in vain,” he said. “The path of reform is seldom smooth, but it is the surest route to lasting stability and shared prosperity.”
He promised to invest in critical infrastructure and ensure food security in Nigeria, which he said are “strategic investments that unlock private capital”.
“We will take decisive steps to strengthen agricultural markets. Food security is national security,” the president said.
“The 2026 Budget prioritises input financing and mechanisation; irrigation and climate‑resilient agriculture; storage and processing; and agro‑value chains.”
With these measures, Tinubu is eyeing a reduction in post‑harvest losses, improvement in incomes for smallholders, deepening of agro‑industrialisation, and a more resilient, diversified economy.
