Nigeria’s budget too small for its population — Minister

Nigeria's Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, has highlighted that the country's budget is one of the smallest among the world's 10 most populous nations, despite the nation's vast population and development requirements. Addressing a Senate Press Corps Capacity-Building Workshop in Abuja, Bagudu called for a wider national conversation on revenue mobilisation to expand the fiscal space needed to fund development and achieve long-term economic aspirations.

He emphasised the need to ask fundamental questions such as "What is the national budget, and what should it be?" to determine if the current public spending levels are adequate to meet development objectives. Bagudu urged journalists to delve deeper into budget provisions, investigating their origins, purposes, and beneficiaries to avoid premature conclusions.

He stressed that effective scrutiny should encompass understanding the constitutional process, budgetary rationales, and the development needs the provisions aim to address. The minister linked the budgetary challenges to President Bola Tinubu's Renewed Hope Agenda and the goal of building a $1tn economy, stressing that Nigerians must confront difficult yet necessary questions about resource mobilisation and public investment.

He underscored the National Assembly's constitutional role in the budget process, urging the media to enhance scrutiny through evidence-based reporting while maintaining balance by considering national security and strategic interests.