The Nigerian Senate has once again extended the deadline for executing the capital aspect of the 2024 federal budget until December 31, 2025. The upper chamber reached this decision during the plenary session on Tuesday after reviewing an appropriation bill seeking its modification and extension.
Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin declared the appropriation bill extended after it was read three times on the same day, gaining the support of a majority of senators. The Senate Committee on Supply also evaluated the bill.
The Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Appropriation, Olamilekan Adeola (APC, Ogun West), spearheaded the discussion regarding the budget extension. Mr. Adeola indicated that the extension was necessary for the government to finalise ongoing projects included in the budgets.
He further noted that the Nigerian government did not have the resources to fulfil the proposed expenditures in the budget. Consequently, Mr. Adeola called on his colleagues to back the budget extension to prevent the abandonment of federal projects nationwide.
Senator Tahir Munguno from Borno North supported extending the appropriation bill.
Senator Abdul Ningi from Bauchi Central and his colleague from Bayelsa West, Seriake Dickson, urged the National Assembly leadership to maintain transparency in budget management.
Mr. Ningi, of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), insisted that the Senate instruct its appropriations committee to communicate with the presidency to clarify the nation’s inadequate financial capacity to support vital projects.
This marks the second time the Senate has extended the implementation phase of the 2024 budget’s capital component, which totals N13.1 trillion and has an overall budget of N34 trillion.
The initial extension came after a request from President Bola Tinubu, who wrote to the National Assembly in December 2024, seeking approval to push the deadline for capital expenditure execution from December 31, 2024, to June 30, 2025.
At that time, the president justified the request by stating it would allow the executive branch to complete ongoing capital projects and optimise budget allocations.
