The National Assembly has officially passed an N54.9 trillion budget for the 2025 financial year, marking an increase of N700 billion from the initial N54.2 trillion proposal.
The bill was approved separately by both the Senate and the House of Representatives, solidifying the financial framework for the upcoming year.
A detailed breakdown of the budget allocations reveals that statutory transfers will account for N3.645 trillion, while a significant N14.317 trillion has been earmarked for debt servicing.
Recurrent expenditure is projected to reach N13.64 trillion, whereas capital expenditure, designated under the development fund, will take the largest share at N23.963 trillion.
The fiscal deficit stands at N13.08 trillion, with a Deficit-to-Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio of 1.52%.
Last week, President Bola Tinubu revised the initial budget from N49.7 trillion to N54.2 trillion before seeking approval from the legislative chambers to address critical economic and infrastructural needs.
During the presentation of the bill for consideration, the Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, Abubakar Bichi, emphasized that the committee engaged extensively with the Presidential Economic Planning team to refine revenue projections and expenditure allocations for the 2025 Appropriation Bill.
He noted that the budget was presented later than the previous year’s, urging the executive arm to ensure timely submission of future budgets at least three months before the start of the new financial year. This, he stressed, would help maintain the crucial January-to-December budget cycle.
