The Federal Government’s operation of multiple budgets is not a fiscal anomaly but rather a permitted practice under the laws.
According to Dr. Tanimu Yakubu, Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation. Nigeria is currently operating three budget instruments simultaneously:
-2024 Main Appropriation Act- This budget serves as the primary legal framework for federal spending in 2024, covering capital projects, statutory obligations, and contracts tied to 2024 project codes.
-2024 Supplementary Budget-Designed to address escalating security and humanitarian demands, revenue windfalls or reallocations, and emerging economic shocks not accounted for in the main budget.
This supplementary budget amends or extends the main budget, running concurrently as a legal and fiscal continuation.
-2025 Appropriation Act-Signed before the end of 2024 to maintain the January-December budget cycle, its execution coexists with unspent but already committed capital allocations from 2024, procurement delays, and disbursement lags, as well as multi-year or donor-funded projects.
The Budget Office DG emphasized that this situation is not unique to Nigeria, citing similar practices in countries like India, Indonesia, and Kenya, where governments reconcile planning cycles with execution realities.
The coexistence of multiple budgets is supported by legal instruments such as the Finance Act, Appropriation Act clauses, and Central Bank circulars, allowing for:
-Rollover of capital releases across fiscal years.
-Cash-flow bridging to support early implementation of new budgets.
-Parallel accounting for complex or externally-financed infrastructure and social programs.
The key issue, according to Yakubu, is not the existence of multiple budgets but rather the coordination and transparency of their execution.
The 2025 budget is being implemented while residuals from the 2024 and Supplementary Budgets are lawfully closed out and disbursed, aiming to build a more agile and accountable public finance framework.
