At least 78 Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the Federal Government have allocated nearly ₦400 billion in the 2026 budget for the construction and rehabilitation of community halls, mosques, traditional rulers’ palaces, village market squares and civic centres.
An analysis of the budget shows that more than half of the allocation is earmarked for projects considered non-developmental, including the distribution of grains, motorcycles and tricycles, sponsorship of community thrift societies, and the construction of museums and mini-stadia.
The affected MDAs include the Defence Headquarters, Nigerian Air Force, Nigerian Defence Academy, Technical Aid Corps, Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation, National Building and Road Research Institute (NBRRI), National Productivity Centre and several research institutions.
Economic analysts have criticised the spending pattern, arguing that the projects do not reflect Nigeria’s most pressing development priorities given the country’s current fiscal challenges.
They contend that allocating hundreds of billions of naira to numerous small-scale projects reduces funding available for critical sectors such as healthcare, education, security, roads, power and other infrastructure capable of delivering broader economic benefits.
The experts also warned that many of the projects have little connection to the statutory responsibilities of the agencies executing them, raising concerns about transparency, accountability and fiscal discipline.
For example, the National Building and Road Research Institute’s 2026 budget includes the construction of village halls in Anambra State, an international market in Jigawa State, traditional rulers’ palaces in Rivers and Kogi states, market stalls in Borno State, a multipurpose hall in Kaduna State and the renovation of mosques in Kebbi, Ekiti and Jigawa states.
The combined value of these projects exceeds ₦4 billion, despite having no direct link to the institute’s mandate.
Similarly, the National Productivity Centre’s budget provides for projects such as support for Ijaw musicians, the construction of an Emir’s palace in Yobe State, an econometrics laboratory in Ekiti State, the refurbishment of traditional rulers’ palaces in Ogun State and the construction of an abattoir in Gombe State.
The National Mathematical Centre is also expected to finance the construction of a Sociology Department building at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, a project many observers say falls outside its core responsibilities.
Consultant economist and former central banker Chukwunonso Ihuma blamed the situation on weak legislative oversight, alleging that lawmakers often insert projects into agency budgets that have little developmental value.
He called for a return to zero-based budgeting, where every expenditure must be justified from scratch, and urged the Budget Office of the Federation to reject projects that do not align with national priorities or the mandates of the affected agencies.
According to Ihuma, projects such as markets, traditional rulers’ palaces and civic centres are typically the responsibility of state and local governments rather than federal agencies.
President Bola Tinubu signed the ₦68.32 trillion 2026 Appropriation Act into law in April and also extended the implementation period for the 2025 budget to June 30, 2026. The Senate later approved a further extension of the capital component to September 30, 2026, to allow ongoing projects to be completed.
The Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research (NISER) said effective implementation of the budget would require stronger fiscal coordination, improved revenue generation and structural reforms to address inflation, exchange rate volatility and economic inequality.
Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Dr Muda Yusuf, said the government’s decision to discontinue reliance on the Central Bank’s Ways and Means financing had created additional fiscal pressure, making revenue generation more challenging.
He also questioned the realism of the 2026 budget assumptions, which project ₦36.87 trillion in revenue, oil production of 1.84 million barrels per day, an oil benchmark of $75 per barrel, GDP growth of between 4.28 and 4.68 per cent, and ₦15.81 trillion for debt servicing.
Media strategist Umar Sani noted that while lawmakers sometimes include constituency projects in the budget, the executive does not always implement them, leading to disagreements over budget execution.
He added that previous administrations had rejected appropriation bills containing projects they considered unnecessary, stressing the need for more disciplined budgeting that prioritises national development.