Director General, Budget Office of the Federation, Dr. Tanimu Yakubu yesterday said that the operation of multiple budgets by the Federal Government is not a fiscal anomaly but permitted under the laws.
Tanimu stated this in response to the public outcry generated by the second extension of the 2024 Budget by the National Assembly, stressing that similar practice exists in In India, Indonesia, and Kenya.
In a statement titled, “Why Nigeria is running multiple budgets,” Tanimu, said: “Nigeria is currently operating three budget instruments at once: the 2024 Main Appropriation Act, the 2024 Supplementary Budget, and the 2025 Appropriation Act. While this may raise eyebrows, it is not a fiscal anomaly. It reflects the real-world overlap between budget law, execution delays, and system-wide reform efforts.
“The 2024 Appropriation Act, signed in January 2024, remains valid through December 31, 2024, unless formally repealed or extended. It is the primary legal framework for federal spending in 2024 and remains active-especially for capital projects, statutory obligations, and contracts tied to 2024 project codes.
“The 2024 Supplementary Appropriation Act, passed mid-year, was designed to address: Escalating security and humanitarian demands; Revenue windfalls or reallocations; Emerging economic shocks and sectoral urgencies not accounted for in the main budget.
As is standard in public finance, a supplementary budget amends or extends the main budget. It runs concurrently-not as a duplicate, but as a legal and fiscal continuation.
“Although the 2025 Appropriation Act was signed before the end of 2024-part of efforts to maintain the January-December budget cycle-the transition hasn’t been seamless.
Execution of the 2025 budget coexists with: Unspent but already committed capital allocations from 2024; Procurement delays and disbursement lags; Multi-year or donor-funded projects that legally span two or more fiscal years.
“This situation is not unique to Nigeria. In India, Indonesia, and Kenya, similar overlaps occur as governments reconcile planning cycles with execution realities.
The Finance Act, Appropriation Act clauses, and Central Bank circulars provide the legal basis for this coexistence by allowing: Rollover of capital releases across fiscal years; Cash-flow bridging to support early implementation of new budgets; Parallel accounting for complex or externally-financed infrastructure and social programs.
Rather than contradiction, this arrangement is an example of institutional flexibility in managing fiscal transitions.
“The presence of multiple concurrent budgets does not imply fiscal confusion. It reflects a performance-based, transitional budget system where: “The 2025 budget is being implemented in earnest, while residuals from the 2024 and Supplementary Budgets are lawfully closed out and disbursed. This is part of building a more agile and accountable public finance framework. The real issue is not the existence of three budgets, but the coordination and transparency of their execution.”
VANGUARD.
