Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has signed the N54.99 trillion 2025 budget into law, nearly doubling the previous year’s N27.5 trillion allocation. The National Assembly approved the bill on February 13 after revising Tinubu’s initial proposal of N49.7 trillion.
The budget includes N3.65 trillion in statutory transfers, N13.64 trillion for recurrent (non-debt) expenditures, and a significant increase in debt servicing costs, which now stand at N14.32 trillion. Revenue sources include N1.4 trillion from the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), N1.2 trillion from the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), and N1.8 trillion from other government agencies.
While the government argues the expanded budget allows for critical national priorities, analysts warn that the growing fiscal deficit—estimated at N13.08 trillion—and rising debt servicing costs could strain resources for infrastructure and social programs.
Tinubu has pledged to cut inflation from 34.6% to 15% by the end of 2025 and stabilize the exchange rate at N1,500/$1. However, economic experts, including Tilewa Adebayo and Dr. Muda Yusuf, have raised concerns over the increasing debt burden and the low implementation rate of capital projects, warning that debt servicing alone surpasses combined allocations for defense, security, infrastructure, health, and education.