As the National Assembly commences budget defence meetings for the 2025 fiscal year, Adesuwa Tsan highlights critical areas that lawmakers must focus on to address Nigeria’s pressing challenges and drive sustainable development.
The National Assembly recently kicked off budget defence meetings for the 2025 budget with ministers and heads of government agencies. These meetings provide a platform for the agencies to justify their 2025 budget allocations and review the implementation of the 2024 budget vis-a-vis their performances.
So far, some government agencies have expressed concerns over low funding, which they claim hamper their ability to function effectively. This issue is critical, as adequate funding is essential for these agencies to deliver on their mandates, with a view to providing required services and drive national development.
The budget defence meetings are a crucial step in the budgeting process, as it not only allows lawmakers to scrutinise the budget estimates and ensure that allocations are aligned with national priorities, but also sets the tone for what to look out for during oversight visits to the ministries, parastatals and other agencies of government.
From the sessions that held recently, specifically that of the Joint Committee of the Senate and House of Representatives on Appropriations with the Minister of Finance and his Budget and National Planning counterpart, it emerged that the previous year’s budget only achieved a dismal 25 percent performance. This performance dims hope for the long-suffering people of Nigeria who are under the weight of galloping inflation and poor standard of living occasioned by the economic policies of the President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
However, with President Tinubu’s 2025 “Budget of Restoration,” the National Assembly can strive to ensure that the life of an average Nigerian is improved upon by ensuring that it performs in the areas of security rebuilding, by driving economic growth and improving agricultural development across the country.
Priorities areas in the 2025 budget
The National Assembly must leverage its legislative authority to prioritise capital projects in key sectors, ensure efficient allocation of resources, and enforce accountability in the 2025 fiscal year.
Many agencies have decried poor funding of their key projects, saying it will make it impossible to make meaningful impact on the lives of Nigerians.
This position was highlighted by the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, who disclosed while defending her ministry’s 2025 budget before the National Assembly. She said ‘’the ministry will not be able to achieve all the desired impacts. The ministry’s 2025 capital proposal stood at N3.8 billion which is inadequate to meet the scope of work required to deliver impact to Nigerians across the nation.’’
Infrastructure remains the backbone of any economy, yet Nigeria’s inadequate road networks, erratic power supply, and substandard housing continue to limit productivity and discourage investment. Lawmakers must, therefore, approve significant funding for transformative projects in transportation, power, and housing, while mandating transparency and accountability mechanisms to prevent cost overruns and project delays. In particular, delays in release of finances for critical projects must be eliminated if this administration intends to make good its promises. Strengthening oversight on project execution and ensuring compliance with procurement laws will be critical to achieving these goals.
Security
This remains a pressing concern as rising insecurity disrupts lives and livelihoods while deterring local and foreign investment. To address this, lawmakers should prioritise increased budgetary allocation for modern defence equipment and improved welfare for security personnel. Legislative support for state policing initiatives and enhanced intelligence gathering will also be crucial, alongside strict monitoring of security expenditure to ensure resources are effectively utilised. Like Sen. Samson Ekong (Akwa Ibom South) emphasised, not much economic progress can be made when ‘’we cannot sleep when our space is not safe or have adequate investments when our borders, when our space is not secure.’’ Sen Ireti Kingibe, on her part, also added her voice when she stated that ‘’it is critical and vital that insecurity is addressed and when insecurity is taken care of, every other thing will fall into place.’’
Education
This sector is critical for developing a skilled workforce capable of driving economic growth. However, Nigeria’s education sector suffers from underfunding, outdated infrastructure, and a mismatch between curricula and market demands. Legislators must ensure adequate funding for education infrastructure, digital learning tools, and teacher training, while promoting STEM education and vocational training programmes to align with industry needs.
Advancing arguments in support of the above position, Sen. Amos Yohanna (Adamawa North) stated that ‘’our people are our greatest resource and so for devoting huge resources towards that is in the right direction. My heart wrenches when we go for public hearings to establish universities and other specialised institutions and ministries of government come out to oppose it in the name of lack of resources. We need institutions that will develop our human resources. If you don’t develop your human resources, there can never be development.’’
Healthcare
As serious as this sector is, it is faced with ginormous challenges, including inadequate and obsolete facilities, a declining and poorly motivated workforce and low insurance coverage for Nigerians which hinder economic productivity. Lawmakers should allocate more funds to primary healthcare centres and medical equipment, while expanding health insurance coverage to vulnerable populations. Establishing frameworks for pandemic preparedness is essential to safeguard public health against future emergencies.
Economic diversification
The National Assembly must be intentional in making moves to reduce Nigeria’s overreliance on oil revenue, which exposes the economy to global price shocks. The lawmakers must partner the executive to build more investments in agriculture, technology, and manufacturing to drive job creation and foster sustainable growth. Public-private partnerships and foreign direct investment should be encouraged, funding of local manufacturing companies must be increased while legislators monitor the implementation of diversification strategies to ensure results-driven initiatives.
Revenue generation and fiscal discipline are vital for Nigeria’s economic stability. With high debt-servicing costs and reliance on volatile oil revenue, lawmakers must push for efficient tax reforms to expand the tax base and improve collection efficiency. Curbing wasteful spending and reallocating funds to high-priority sectors to stimulate it will ensure fiscal sustainability. Like Sen. Uzor Kalu (Abia North) aptly put it, ‘’If the economy is not stimulated, what we are talking about, with regards to bringing the dollar down, is not going to happen because doing more in agriculture, export production must be key to what we are going to be looking at in 2025.”
Social welfare
With over 40 percent of Nigerians living below the poverty line, lawmakers must prioritise social welfare programmes. Expanding funding for poverty alleviation initiatives, such as cash transfers and food security programmes, is essential. Transparent disbursement mechanisms must be enforced to ensure these programmes benefit the most vulnerable populations, unlike in the past where supervising government officials converted the resources meant for these programmes for private use. Like Sen. Abdul Ningi (Bauchi Central) noted, ‘’it is important for all of us to recognise that apart from the volume of statistics and data churned out year in, year out, in the end, how our people feel the impact? What is their economic position? Are we improving their economic position? Have they improved in 2023 and 2024? What about hunger? What about insecurity? These are some of the things that we, as a parliament, must bring to bear. The literature of budget is just not clear enough.’’
Climate change
Climate change and environmental degradation also pose long-term risks to security, infrastructure, agriculture, and public health. Legislative support for sustainable ranching methods, renewable energy adoption, climate-resilient agricultural practices, and waste management systems will be crucial. Funding for reforestation projects and oversight of Nigeria’s climate action commitments are also necessary to build a sustainable future.
Digital economy
The digital economy holds the potential to transform Nigeria’s economic landscape, fostering innovation and creating millions of jobs. Legislators should support investments in digital infrastructure, including broadband penetration, and promote e-governance initiatives to enhance transparency and reduce corruption.