Nigeria will continue to rely on borrowing to finance its widening budget deficit, the Senate has disclosed, as lawmakers and fiscal experts warn that rising public debt and weak revenue mobilisation could deepen the country’s economic vulnerabilities.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Senator Solomon Adeola, revealed this on Monday during the public hearing on the 2026 Appropriation Bill at the National Assembly in Abuja.
According to Adeola, the 2026 budget proposes total expenditure of N58.47 trillion against projected revenue of N33.19 trillion, leaving a deficit of N25.27 trillion.
“Debt servicing alone is projected to consume N15.90 trillion,” he said, adding that Nigeria cannot avoid borrowing given unpredictable revenue inflows and enormous development needs.
“The key issue is not whether we borrow, but how responsibly we manage these deficits,” Adeola stated.
He said the National Assembly would intensify scrutiny of service-wide votes and vowed that no federal budget would be allowed to extend beyond December 31 of any fiscal year, citing persistent weak implementation and abandoned projects.
“Never again will budget extensions be granted. We must enforce strict timelines and ensure that policies translate into real outcomes,” he said.
Adeola added that future borrowings would be carefully managed to avoid crowding out private-sector credit, with preference given to external loans, public-private partnerships, asset optimisation, privatisation and Eurobond issuances.
He further stressed that no government agency would benefit from service-wide votes without proper accountability, noting that every expenditure item would undergo strict scrutiny to ensure transparency, efficiency and fiscal discipline.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Health, Prof. Mohammed Ali Pate, disclosed that the Federal Ministry of Health received only N36 million of the N218 billion appropriated for its 2025 capital expenditure, citing severe funding constraints.
Pate made the disclosure during the ministry’s 2026 budget defence before the House of Representatives Committee on Healthcare Services, explaining that the shortfall made it impossible to execute capital projects.
According to him, while the ministry’s personnel allocation for 2025 was fully released and utilised, capital spending suffered due to the bottom-up cash planning system operated by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and delays in counterpart funding.
He said the delays prevented the ministry from accessing donor-supported funds tied to capital projects, stalling implementation beyond the ministry’s control.
Pate noted that the health sector’s planning framework is guided by Vision 20:2020, the Medium-Term National Development Plan 2021–2025 and the National Strategic Health Development Plan II, all aligned with the National Health Act and the National Health Policy.
He added that Universal Health Coverage remains central to the ministry’s mandate, particularly in strengthening primary healthcare delivery.
On the 2026 budget proposal, the minister said it was prepared in line with the 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper and processed through the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System to ensure needs-based resource allocation.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Healthcare Services, Amos Magaji, directed the minister to submit detailed documentation on donor funds received by the ministry and their utilisation.
