Report says NASS approved N6.6trn 'unknown projects'

A new report which studied the breakdown of the 2024 budget passed by the 10th National Assembly (NASS) says unknown projects worth N6.6 trillion were discovered.

The suspended Senator Abdul Ningi (Bauchi Central) first accused his colleagues of padding the Appropriation Act. The lawmakers had approved N8,447,887,443,379 for several capital projects to be executed by 20 federal ministries.

A document titled “Final Summary Analysis of the Harmonized 2024 Budget (Passed)”, produced by Microxpressions Consult and submitted to the legislature, gave an overview of the figures focusing on allocations to Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs).

In its analysis, Economic Confidential found that N2,486,098,619,722 budgeted for capital projects in more than 15 ministries was aggregated into regional projects, while N4,185,711,477,842 was alloted to projects without geographic identifiers, thus complicating monitoring.

The report said the allocation to the South-West was N419,917,163,300, the South-East got N537,086,249,684; South-South – N224,969,978,366, North-West – N365,387,892,588, North-East – N349,434,063,602, and North-Central – N730,029,622,125.

“Surprisingly, N6,671,810,092,564 (out of the N8,447,887,443,379), approximately 71.98% of the total ‘Development Capital Allocation’, was assigned to initiatives that are either elusive in terms of traceability or encumbered by accountability constraints,” it noted as reported by The Guardian Nigeria.

Ministry of Youths: A total of N5,096,411,496 was budgeted for projects across all zones but locations of projects worth N2,868,851,764 were not indicated; Ministry of Sports: N21,614,361,733 earmarked for projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N7,464,061,733 not named.

Ministry of Defence: N3,762,721,808,585 set aside for projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N3,280,130,880,602 not mentioned; Ministry of Special Duties: N10,770,986,503 budgeted for projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N4,672,818,582 not identified.

Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning: N2,293,112,174,749 allocated for projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N383,729,998,776 not stated; Ministry of Tourism: N15,358,369,171 pegged for projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N1,206,655,625 not disclosed.

Ministry of Petroleum Resources: N8,622,741,732 approved for projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N8,554,622,753 not mentioned; Ministry of Women Affairs: N12,055,872,158 earmarked for projects across all zones, location of projects worth N4,382,888,112 were revealed.

Ministry of Justice: N33,860,593,566 budgeted for projects across all zones, location of projects worth N25,742,716,841 not identified; Ministry of Police Affairs: N99,382,436,919 alloted to projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N49,090,806,535 not disclosed.

Ministry of Agriculture: N895,398,209,400 earmarked for projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N124,131,394,058 not indicated; Ministry of Environment: N75,200,361,462 allocated for projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N55,278,212,086 not mentioned.

Ministry of Solid Minerals: N26,911,766,878 set aside for projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N21,524,219,531 not identified; Ministry of Works: N987,289,797,899 earmarked for projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N44,428,040,905 not stated.

Ministry of Water Resources: N281,591,884,394 budgeted for projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N54,120,180,977 not disclosed; Ministry of Health: N539,413,163,575 alloted to projects across all zones, locations of projects worth N146,215,196,278 not revealed.

Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy: A total of N4,893,877,166 was approved for various capital projects across all zones but locations of projects worth N3,646,711,848 were not indicated.

“The ministries must provide declarations regarding projects’ intended locations and scope in the interest of transparency and accountability,” according to Microxpressions Consult. “A stringent location-specific allocation protocol is critical to ensuring that budgetary provisions translate into traceable developmental advancements.”

All reactions: