FG Dismisses Spending ₦8tn Outside Budget, Says IMF Report Misinterpreted

The Federal Government has dismissed claims that more than ₦8 trillion, estimated at about two percent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), was spent outside the approved budget, insisting there is no “shadow budget” and that all public spending is backed by constitutional and statutory provisions.

In a statement issued on Saturday, the Federal Ministry of Finance said recent public commentary referencing the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) 2026 Article IV Consultation Report had misrepresented the Fund’s observations and risked misleading Nigerians about the country’s public financial management.

“The Federal Government does not operate a ‘shadow budget’ or expend public funds outside the constitutional and statutory framework established for public finance,” the ministry said.

It explained that under Sections 80 to 83 and 162 of the 1999 Constitution, public funds can only be withdrawn and spent in line with the Constitution and laws passed by the National Assembly.

According to the ministry, federal expenditure is incurred through duly enacted Appropriation Acts, Supplementary Appropriation Acts and other statutory authorities, while multi-year capital projects are implemented under existing laws and approved capital rollover provisions.

“It is inaccurate to suggest that trillions of naira have been secretly spent outside legislative approval,” the statement said, adding that allegations of such magnitude should identify specific projects executed without appropriation and provide “credible evidence” rather than conjecture.

The ministry also sought to distinguish between appropriation, expenditure authorisation, financing and fiscal reporting, noting that several categories of government spending, including statutory transfers, debt service obligations, first-line charges, intervention programmes and capital budgets for some agencies, are authorised by law even when they are presented differently in fiscal reports.

“These expenditures are neither secret nor illegal. They are established by law, disclosed in various fiscal reports, and subject to applicable oversight, audit and accountability mechanisms,” it said.

The government further rejected suggestions that the reported amount represented an increase in Nigeria’s fiscal deficit, explaining that the deficit is determined by the relationship between total government revenue and expenditure rather than the financing mechanism for approved spending.

According to the ministry, the IMF’s observation relates “primarily to the comprehensiveness, timing and presentation of fiscal reporting rather than the legality of expenditure.”

It added that the Tinubu administration is already pursuing reforms to align budget presentation with international fiscal reporting standards, recalling that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had asked the National Assembly during the presentation of the 2026 Appropriation Bill to harmonise multiple and overlapping budgets into a single framework.

The ministry said the government remains committed to prudent fiscal management, transparency and accountability, citing ongoing reforms in budget credibility, revenue administration, treasury management and the digitalisation of government financial processes.

“Mischaracterising technical observations as evidence of unlawful expenditure neither advances informed public discourse nor strengthens democratic accountability,” it said.