BudgIT, a civic tech organisation focused on public finance transparency has raised the alarm over the alleged insertion of 11,122 projects worth N6.93 trillion into the 2025 national budget by the National Assembly.
It disclosed this in a statement made available to the public on Monday.
BudgIt wrote on X, "We have combed through the 2025 FG Budget, and you will be shocked at what we found.”
BudgIT, in the statement signed by Mr Gabriel Okeowo, its country director, lamented that the insertions were made with little to no justification, undermining national planning and diverting funds away from essential development priorities.
“The insertion of over 11,000 projects worth N6.93 trillion into the 2025 budget by the National Assembly is not just alarming, it is an assault on fiscal responsibility.
“This trend, increasingly normalised, undermines the purpose of national budgeting, distorts development priorities, and redirects scarce resources into the hands of political elites.
“Of particular concern are 238 projects each valued above N5 billion, totalling N2.29 trillion, and another 984 projects worth N1.71 trillion.”
BudgIT also flagged 1,119 projects within the range of N500 million to N1 billion, together worth over N641 billion, as largely indiscriminate and politically motivated.
The analysis further highlighted that 3,573 of the inserted projects, worth N653.19 billion, are designated for federal constituencies, while 1,972 projects, valued at N444.04 billion, are tied to senatorial districts.
The list includes 1,477 streetlight projects worth N393.29 billion, 538 borehole projects at N114.53 billion, and 2,122 ICT-related projects totalling N505.79 billion.
Also, N6.74 billion was earmarked for the “empowerment of traditional rulers”.
BudgIT expressed shock over the fact that 39 percent of all insertions, 4,371 projects valued at N1.72 trillion, were pushed into the Ministry of Agriculture’s budget, inflating its capital allocation from N242.5 billion to N1.95 trillion.
Other ministries such as Science and Technology and Budget and Economic Planning also saw inflated budgets through insertions alone.
It could be recalled that the National Assembly had passed a total of N54.99 trillion for the 2025 fiscal year.
The budget, initially N49.7 trillion, was raised to N54.2 trillion by the NASS after Tinubu applied for the increase.