Nigeria Capital Expenditure Claims Questioned by Analysts

Economic analysts have raised concerns over the Federal Government’s claim of achieving 85% of its capital expenditure in the 2024 fiscal year, citing transparency issues and delays in contractor payments. The claim was made by the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, at the 2026 Macroeconomic Outlook event in Lagos, where he stated that the government’s extension of the budget implementation period led to strong execution levels.

The minister explained that the National Assembly’s extension of the 2024 budget to December 2025 allowed for the completion of ongoing projects, resulting in an 85% performance in capital expenditure. However, economists argue that the reported figures remain unsubstantiated, and independent oversight is necessary to verify the claims.

Economist Aliyu Ilias expressed skepticism, stressing the importance of transparency and independent verification. “The fact remains that transparency is key. I don’t think a government executive should be the one telling us; it should be the people with the oversight function, like the National Assembly, to come and see it,” Ilias said. He also pointed to unresolved payments to contractors, noting that capital projects are often neglected despite being crucial to economic development.

Renowned Professor of Economics Akpan Ekpo echoed similar concerns, stating that the effect of the capital outlay is not being felt due to delays in disbursement. “It’s capital expenditure that enhances growth. Now he’s talking about 2024, which has almost a one-year or nearly two-year lag. For the 2025 budget, only 17% of the capital expenditure has been released. We are not feeling the impact because of the delay in releases,” Ekpo said.

In contrast, former Zenith Bank chief economist Marcel Okeke defended the government’s claims, noting that, in the absence of other official data, there is little basis to dispute the numbers. “My position is this: there’s no way you can counter whatever figure has been released because we are talking about projects. No other authority has provided any figure before now,” Okeke said.

The National Assembly had revised the 2024 budget to N43.56tn, increasing capital spending to N22.27tn, to ensure the completion of ongoing projects. The revision effectively extended the budget’s implementation period to December 2025. While the government maintains that the extension and increased allocations ensured strong execution of infrastructure projects, economists argue that independent verification and transparency are essential to building public trust.

As the government moves forward with its economic plans, the need for transparency and independent oversight will become increasingly important. The ability to verify the government’s claims will be crucial in assessing the effectiveness of its economic policies and ensuring that public funds are being utilized efficiently.