The Federal Government (FG) has allocated ₦962.83 billion for the purchase of Sport Utility Vehicles and thousands of empowerment projects in the 2026 budget, an amount higher than the combined allocations of seven major federal ministries.
According to Punch, an analysis of the 2026 Appropriation Act by civic technology organisation, Tracka, showed that ₦15.13 billion was provided for the procurement of 39 SUVs, while another ₦947.70 billion was allocated to 2,579 empowerment projects.
The two allocations bring the total spending on SUVs and empowerment interventions to ₦962.83 billion.
Tracka said the figure exceeded the ₦960.27 billion collectively allocated to the Federal Ministries of Industry, Trade and Investment; Housing and Urban Development; Women Affairs; Justice; Livestock Development; Aviation and Aerospace Development; and Petroleum Resources.
According to the organisation, the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment received ₦156.8 billion, Housing and Urban Development got ₦145.3 billion, Women Affairs was allocated ₦169.39 billion, while the Ministry of Justice received ₦150.7 billion.
Livestock Development got ₦177.6 billion, Aviation and Aerospace Development received ₦87.3 billon, while Petroleum Resources was allocated ₦73.1 billion.
Tracka Faults Project Transparency
Tracka raised concerns over what it described as the poor disclosure surrounding the empowerment projects, particularly the failure to specify where most of them would be implemented.
It stated, “Yet, only 70 of the 2,579 empowerment projects have clearly identified implementation locations.”
The organisation said the absence of clearly defined project locations could make monitoring and accountability difficult for citizens and oversight institutions.
It asked, “How can citizens track projects with no stated location? How can oversight institutions verify implementation? How can taxpayers know who ultimately benefits from these allocations?”
Tracka further disclosed that the projects were distributed among 184 implementing agencies, including institutions whose statutory responsibilities do not traditionally include large-scale empowerment interventions.
According to its findings, the Federal Cooperative College, Oji River, was assigned 393 projects worth ₦127.1bn, while the National Agricultural Development Fund received six projects valued at ₦89.5bn.
The Federal College of Horticulture, Dadin-Kowa, Gombe State, was assigned 216 projects valued at ₦88.1 billion, while the Federal Cooperative College, Ibadan, got 94 projects worth ₦36.9 billion.
Fertiliser Scheme Gets ₦89 Billion
A review of the budget based on Tracka’s findings showed that the largest single empowerment allocation was ₦89.09 billion for the Renewed Hope Fertiliser Support Programme under the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF).
Other major provisions included ₦14 billion for the procurement and distribution of economic empowerment equipment and utility vehicles through the Federal Cooperative College, Oji River.
Another ₦14 billion was provided for youth empowerment programmes under the Federal Ministry of Youth Development, while the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation received a separate ₦14 billion allocation for youth empowerment and medical outreach.
The budget also contains several provisions for the procurement and distribution of buses, motorcycles, tricycles, electric vehicles, sewing machines, fertilisers, vocational tools, grants and other empowerment materials across different parts of the country.
Tracka acknowledged that empowerment initiatives could improve livelihoods and create opportunities when transparently implemented.
It said, “Let us be clear, there is nothing inherently wrong with empowerment programmes! When well-designed and transparently implemented, they can improve livelihoods, create economic opportunities, and support vulnerable Nigerians.”
The organisation, however, warned that poorly defined empowerment programmes had historically created opportunities for political patronage and misuse of public funds.
“Experience over the years has shown that many poorly defined empowerment projects have become vehicles for political patronage, rewarding loyalists rather than delivering broad-based benefits to citizens.
“When projects have no clear location, no transparent beneficiary selection process, and are assigned to agencies without the appropriate mandate, public confidence is eroded, and accountability becomes difficult,” Tracka stated.
Group Raises Concerns Over Borrowing
Tracka also questioned the scale of the expenditure against the Federal Government’s widening fiscal deficit and increasing reliance on borrowing to finance the 2026 budget.
It said, “This concern is even more pressing given that the 2026 Budget is projected to be financed with a deficit of about 46 per cent.
“At a time when government is borrowing heavily to fund public expenditure, every naira should be directed toward investments with clear development outcomes, measurable impact, and value for money, not opaque allocations that citizens cannot effectively track.”
The organisation called for clearer disclosure in subsequent budget preparation and implementation.
According to Tracka, “A budget should not only allocate resources, it should also inspire public confidence. Every budget item should have a clear purpose, a defined location, an implementing agency with the legal mandate to deliver it, identifiable beneficiaries, and measurable outcomes.”
FG Borrowing Rises To ₦29.2 Trillion
According to Punch, the Federal Government increased its planned borrowing for 2026 to ₦29.20 trillion following an expansion of the budget.
The amount represents an increase of ₦11.31 trillion from the initial ₦17.89 trillion borrowing proposal contained in the 2026 Abridged Budget Call Circular issued by the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning.
Total expenditure for 2026 is estimated at ₦68.32 trillion, while aggregate revenue is projected at ₦36.87 trillion, leaving a fiscal deficit of about ₦31.46 trillion.
The Federal Government also raised ₦5.08 trillion from the domestic bond market in the first six months of 2026, representing a 77.8 per cent increase from the ₦2.86 trillion raised in the corresponding period of 2025, according to Debt Management Office auction data.
Economist Warns Of Debt Trap
The Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, Dr Muda Yusuf, had warned that excessive deficits and growing debt could threaten Nigeria’s fragile macroeconomic recovery.
Yusuf said there was a need to worry about debt sustainability because continued borrowing could further constrain government finances.
He said, “We need to worry about debt sustainability” because “high levels of deficits and high levels of debt… can choke the fiscal space and lead to a kind of vicious circle of debt.”
According to him, the country had begun recording some improvement in macroeconomic stability, but fiscal indiscipline could reverse the gains.
“We already have a reasonable level of macroeconomic stability” and “once we lose that recovery… it will create even more problems because that is where the problem of inflationary pressure will come and that is where the pressure on the exchange rate will come,” Yusuf added.
He urged the government to use improved revenues to reduce its deficit and borrowing exposure.
Nigeria, he said, must “leverage on the improved revenue situation to moderate the level of deficit and the level of debt exposure so that we don’t put at risk the macroeconomic stability that we have achieved.”
Atiku Queries Oil Windfall
Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has also questioned the government’s borrowing strategy, demanding an explanation for what he described as an estimated ₦7.98tn oil revenue windfall.
In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku questioned why the government continued to borrow heavily despite international crude oil prices remaining above the benchmark used for the 2026 budget.
“Nigerians deserve a full accounting of this windfall. Where has the money gone? Why is there no transparent disclosure of the proceeds from excess crude sales? Why is government borrowing heavily when oil revenues are significantly above budget projections?” the statement said.
Former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Timi Frank, also called for greater transparency in the management of the 2026 budget.
Frank said controversies surrounding budgetary provisions had increased public concern over government spending.
“The recent revelations and controversy surrounding the 2026 Federal Budget have further reinforced the widespread perception that this administration represents one of the most troubling governments in Nigeria’s recent history,” he said.
He added, “Allegations of inflated budgetary allocations, fictitious projects and questionable expenditures have once again raised serious concerns about transparency, accountability and the stewardship of public resources.”
Frank called on the National Assembly to strengthen oversight and properly scrutinise expenditure by the executive.
Economists Question Spending Priorities
A Professor of Economics at Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Sheriffdeen Tella, said empowerment programmes should be designed to stimulate local production rather than finance imported goods.
Speaking with Punch, Tella argued that spending borrowed money on imported vehicles and equipment would reduce the benefits of such programmes to the domestic economy.
“Any empowerment should be based on what we produce here. Spending empowerment money to import things simply means that the money is not here, it is not being used here, and it cannot have much positive impact on our economy,” he said.
Tella urged the government to examine the import component of empowerment programmes and ensure that borrowed funds were used to support Nigerian industries.
According to him, greater reliance on locally produced goods would help create jobs, increase household incomes and retain economic value within the country.
A Lagos-based economist, Adewale Abimbola, also criticised the allocation pattern, describing it as evidence of weak fiscal prioritisation.
“It shows a lack of prioritisation on the part of the Federal Government. It paints the Federal Government as a poor manager of financial resources,” he said.
Abimbola argued that while empowerment programmes could provide relief, investment in infrastructure and human capital would offer stronger long-term benefits.
“Investment in infrastructure and human capital development is a boon for sustainable development. However, I have reservations about government empowerment programmes because they have not proven to be effective and there have been accounts of mismanagement around these funds,” he stated.
He said the government must establish mechanisms to ensure that support reached vulnerable Nigerians rather than being lost to waste or patronage.
“Government needs to be intentional to ensure these programmes reach the actual vulnerable population segment,” Abimbola added.
According to him, the effectiveness of empowerment initiatives depends largely on beneficiary selection, proper utilisation of funds and the provision of complementary technical support.
He added, “A properly planned and implemented empowerment programme acts as temporary relief and could potentially stimulate economic growth. However, the impact is contingent on several factors, including whether support reaches those who truly need it, whether the funds are properly utilised, and whether beneficiaries receive capital, tools and technical support to become self-dependent. For empowerment programmes to catalyse growth, it is not only about capital.”
Abimbola also faulted the assignment of empowerment projects to institutions without clearly related statutory responsibilities, arguing that the practice could further weaken confidence in the budgeting process.