BudgIT Uncovers N6.93 Trillion in Questionable Projects Inserted by National Assembly in 2025 Budget

Civic tech organization BudgIT has exposed what it describes as a massive budgetary scandal involving the insertion of 11,122 projects worth a staggering N6.93 trillion into Nigeria’s 2025 Federal Government budget by the National Assembly.

The detailed analysis reveals that the insertions many with minimal or no justification were made without executive concurrence, sparking widespread concerns over transparency, fiscal responsibility, and the potential for widespread corruption.

According to BudgIT, 238 of these projects are individually valued above N5 billion, amounting to a combined total of N2.29 trillion. Additionally, 984 projects worth N1.71 trillion and another 1,119 projects ranging between N500 million and N1 billion (totaling N641.38 billion) were flagged as indiscriminate insertions.

A breakdown shows that:

• 3,573 projects worth N653.19 billion were routed through federal constituencies.
• 1,972 projects valued at N444.04 billion were linked to senatorial districts.

BudgIT highlighted some particularly concerning anomalies:

• 1,477 streetlight projects cost N393.29 billion.
• 538 boreholes were budgeted at N114.53 billion.
• 2,122 ICT projects received N505.79 billion.
• N6.74 billion was earmarked for the “empowerment of traditional rulers.”

Alarmingly, 39% of all inserted projects, 4,371 of them, worth N1.72 trillion were forced into the Ministry of Agriculture’s budget, inflating its capital allocation nearly eightfold from N242.5 billion to N1.95 trillion.

Similarly, the Ministries of Science and Technology and Budget & National Planning saw capital allocations balloon by N994.98 billion and N1.1 trillion respectively due to these legislative insertions.

BudgIT also raised red flags over the misuse of certain federal agencies, including the Nigerian Building and Road Research Institute (Lagos) and the Federal Cooperative College, Oji River, which were allegedly used as “dumping grounds” for politically motivated projects outside their statutory mandates.

At the Federal Cooperative College, Oji River, questionable allocations include:

• N3 billion for utility vehicles for farmers and distributors.
• N1.5 billion for rural electrification in Rivers State.
• N1 billion for solar streetlights in Enugu State.

“These are institutions fundamentally ill-equipped to execute such projects,” BudgIT stated, citing the likelihood of widespread underperformance and wastage.

The organization has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to exercise stronger executive oversight and initiate urgent reforms to align the budgeting process with the Medium-Term National Development Plan (2021–2025). It also urged the Attorney General to seek a Supreme Court interpretation on the constitutional limits of the National Assembly’s appropriation powers.

BudgIT appealed to Nigeria’s anti-corruption agencies, civil society, and the general public to demand accountability and reform.

“This is not just about financial mismanagement. It is a matter of justice, equity, and the future of accountable governance in Nigeria,” the group concluded.