President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has formally requested the approval of the National Assembly to extend the implementation of the 2025 budget to March 31, 2026, to ensure the full release of the 30 per cent capital allocation to ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs).
Gatekeepers News reports that the request was conveyed in a letter dated December 18, 2025, and read on Friday by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas. In the letter, the President transmitted the Appropriation (Repeal and Re-Enactment) Bills for 2024 and 2025.
According to Tinubu, the bills seek to repeal the existing Appropriation Acts and re-enact revised expenditure plans that reflect current fiscal realities and the government’s execution capacity.
Under the revised proposals, the 2024 budget, originally pegged at N35.06 trillion, is to be replaced with N43.56 trillion, while the 2025 budget, earlier approved at N54.99 trillion, would be re-enacted at N48.32 trillion.
The President explained that the revised figures are designed to cover statutory transfers, debt service, recurrent expenditure and capital development contributions.
“The Bills seek to repeal the 2024 Appropriation Act of N35,055,536,770,218 and re-enact by authorising the issuance from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation of the total sum of N43,561,041,744,507,” Tinubu said.
He added that the amount comprises N1.74 trillion for statutory transfers, N8.27 trillion for debt service, N11.26 trillion for recurrent (non-debt) expenditure, and N22.27 trillion for capital expenditure and development fund contributions.
Similarly, the President said the 2025 Appropriation Act of N54.99 trillion would be repealed and re-enacted with a revised total of N48.31 trillion, covering expenditure for the period ending March 31, 2026.
“The House of Representatives is invited to note that the Bills are submitted to cater for all items not previously recognised, while also reflecting a revised capital implementation target of 30 per cent,” the President stated.
Tinubu said the extension of the 2025 budget timeline is intended to allow for the full release of the targeted capital funds to MDAs, while aligning budget performance with fiscal realities and implementation capacity.
“This further seeks to extend the 2025 Budget to March 31, 2026, to allow for full release of the target 30 per cent for all MDAs,” he said.
The President noted that the submission supersedes an earlier request dated December 16, 2025, and is part of broader fiscal reforms aimed at eliminating overlaps created by multiple concurrently running budgets.
According to him, the proposed legislation will strengthen planning, execution and accountability across government expenditure cycles, while providing a transparent and constitutionally grounded appropriation framework.
Tinubu added that the bills would also enhance fiscal discipline by enforcing strict use of appropriated funds, requiring National Assembly approval for virement, setting conditions for corrigenda, mandating separate recording of excess revenue and ensuring due-process compliance and periodic reporting by MDAs.
