President Bola Tinubu presented the 2026 Appropriation Bill, themed “Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity,” to a joint session of the National Assembly on Friday, December 19, 2025. This fiscal plan, totalling ₦58.18 trillion, is centred on national renewal, stability, and sustainable development, guided by the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda. The budget proposes a total revenue of ₦34.33 trillion, resulting in a fiscal deficit of ₦23.85 trillion, which represents 4.28 per cent of the GDP.

The budget framework is anchored on conservative estimates, including a crude oil benchmark of US$64.85 per barrel, an expected crude oil production of 1.84 million barrels per day, and an exchange rate of ₦1,400 to the US dollar. Capital expenditure is projected at ₦26.08 trillion, while recurrent (non-debt) expenditure totals ₦15.25 trillion. These figures, according to the President, reflect a commitment to balancing fiscal prudence with growth-enhancing investments.

The 2026 Budget was prepared against an improving global outlook and followed a period of reforms that yielded measurable results. In Q3 2025, the economy grew by 3.98%, an increase from 3.86% in Q3 2024. Inflation moderated for eight consecutive months, declining to 14.45% in November 2025 from 24.23% in March 2025, supported by stabilising food and energy prices, tighter monetary conditions, and improved supply responses. Furthermore, oil production improved, non-oil revenues expanded significantly, investor confidence returned, and external reserves rose to a seven-year high of about US$47 billion by November 14, 2025.

The 2026 Budget is guided by four clear objectives: consolidating macroeconomic stability, improving the business and investment environment, promoting job-rich growth and poverty reduction, and strengthening human capital while protecting the vulnerable. President Tinubu emphasised stronger discipline in budget execution for 2026, with directives issued to key ministers to ensure strict implementation. He also highlighted expected improved revenue performance through new National Tax Acts, ongoing oil and gas sector reforms, and strict adherence to revenue targets by Government-Owned Enterprises (GOEs), supported by end-to-end digitisation of revenue mobilisation.

Defence and security received the largest single allocation, amounting to ₦5.41 trillion, underscoring its foundational role for economic growth and social cohesion. The administration is undertaking a comprehensive overhaul of Nigeria’s national security architecture, focusing on modernisation, intelligence-driven operations, and technology-enabled surveillance. A key initiative is the implementation of a new national counterterrorism doctrine designed to combat terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, and other violent crimes. This doctrine broadly classifies any armed group or individual operating outside state authority as a terrorist, including bandits, militias, and those who facilitate or fund such groups, including politicians and community leaders.

Human capital development is prioritised with a combined allocation of ₦6 trillion for education and healthcare (₦3.52 trillion for education and ₦2.48 trillion for health). In education, access to tertiary institutions has been expanded through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, supporting over 418,000 students across 229 institutions. Healthcare investment, representing about six per cent of the total budget, aims to strengthen public health infrastructure and expand access to care. Nigeria also secured over US$500 million in grant funding from the United States for targeted health interventions.

Infrastructure development and economic productivity form the third critical pillar, receiving an allocation of ₦3.56 trillion. The budget strategically links food security with national security, prioritising input financing and mechanisation, climate-resilient irrigation systems, and the development of storage, processing, and agro-value chains. These measures aim to reduce post-harvest losses, increase smallholder incomes, deepen agro-industrialisation, and build a more resilient, diversified economy less dependent on imports.

The presentation was met with assurances of sustained legislative-executive cooperation and fiscal discipline from the National Assembly. Senate President Godswill Akpabio described the joint sitting as a “defining national conversation” and defended the close collaboration between the legislative and executive arms, citing historical examples where institutional alignment fostered national transformation. He acknowledged the economic and social pressures faced by Nigerians but highlighted the country's resilience and the 10th Senate's high legislative output on critical reforms.

Speaker Abbas Tajudeen reinforced the message of partnership, noting that the 2026 budget is “more deliberate, realistic, and results-oriented,” drawing lessons from the 2025 fiscal year's volatility. He cited positive economic indicators such as approaching four per cent real GDP growth, easing inflationary pressures, and strengthened external reserves, which have restored Nigeria’s macroeconomic credibility. Tajudeen welcomed the directive for a single fiscal framework to eliminate parallel budgets and assured that security allocations would translate into tangible improvements in safety.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), however, heavily criticised the budget, labelling it a “budget of consolidated renewed sufferings” that masks the economic hardships faced by ordinary citizens. The opposition party cited the 2025 World Bank Poverty & Equity Brief, stating that over 30.9 per cent of Nigerians live below the international extreme poverty line, and questioned whether the reported 3.98 per cent GDP growth translates into improved living standards amidst “excruciating hunger” and a high cost of living.

The PDP welcomed the security allocations but demanded effective and transparent execution, noting concerns that security operatives sometimes face superior weapons from non-state actors. The party also raised alarms over the President’s admission of the concurrent operation of the 2024 capital budget (extended to December 2025) alongside the 2025 budget, calling it a practice that undermines fiscal discipline, transparency, and accountability, and demanding increased transparency in public finance management.