President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has requested the National Assembly of Nigeria to amend the 2026 Appropriation Bill, proposing an additional ₦9 trillion to raise the total budget from ₦58.4 trillion to ₦67.4 trillion.
The request was conveyed in a letter read during Tuesday’s plenary by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
According to the president, the proposed increase is aimed at enhancing fiscal transparency and ensuring the effective implementation of key national programmes.
Tinubu outlined three major objectives for the adjustment. First, he said it would regularise and settle outstanding legal obligations carried over from previous budgets, preventing them from disrupting the execution of the 2026 fiscal plan.
Second, the proposal seeks to consolidate existing government liabilities within the fiscal framework and provide funding for a limited number of strategic, high-priority projects, while aligning the financing plan to maintain macroeconomic stability and ease pressure on the domestic financial market.
The president had initially presented the 2026 budget, tagged “Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity”, to the National Assembly last December, with a total size of ₦58.18 trillion. Of this, ₦5.41 trillion was allocated to defence and security, representing about 9.3 percent of total expenditure.
He noted that the budget is anchored on “realism, prudence, and growth orientation,” with projected revenue of ₦34.33 trillion and a deficit of ₦23.85 trillion, equivalent to 4.28 percent of GDP.
“These figures are not just accounting lines; they reflect our national priorities,” Tinubu said, reaffirming his administration’s commitment to fiscal sustainability, debt transparency, and value-for-money spending.
The 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework is based on key assumptions, including a crude oil benchmark of $64.85 per barrel, production of 1.84 million barrels per day, and an exchange rate of ₦1,400 to the U.S. dollar.
