ANALYSIS: Just 10 MDAs Corner 84% of Nigeria’s N59.2tn 2026 Budget

ANALYSIS: Just 10 MDAs Corner 84% of Nigeria’s N59.2tn 2026 Budget

Ten federal ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) account for N49.96 trillion—about 84.4 percent—of the N59.2 trillion allocated to 52 MDAs in Nigeria’s 2026 Appropriation Act, underscoring the heavy concentration of public spending in a handful of government institutions.

The N59.2 trillion allocation covers only the budgets of the 52 MDAs and excludes statutory transfers as well as other expenditures captured outside the MDA schedules in the Appropriation Act.

An analysis of the budget shows that the ministries of finance and budget and economic planning alone account for almost N30 trillion of the total allocation, largely because they oversee debt servicing obligations and the service-wide vote (SWV), two of the federal government's largest expenditure items.

The service-wide vote is a central pool of funds set aside to finance contingencies, emergencies and obligations that cut across multiple government institutions.

The budget analysis also reveals sharp differences in spending priorities among the largest MDAs. While ministries such as works, agriculture and science allocate more than 90 percent of their budgets to capital projects aimed at infrastructure and development, others—including defence, education, police affairs and the ministry of Niger Delta—are largely driven by personnel-related spending.

Finance Ministry tops allocations with N16.68tn

The ministry of finance received the largest allocation in the 2026 budget at N16.68 trillion.

However, the bulk of the allocation is not intended for the ministry's administrative operations. About N15.82 trillion—approximately 95 percent of the total—is earmarked for debt servicing through the Debt Management Office (DMO).

The ministry is allocated N54.8 billion for personnel costs, while N807.6 billion is designated for capital expenditure.

Budget ministry receives N13.28tn

The ministry of budget and economic planning is the second-largest recipient with N13.28 trillion.

Its allocation is overwhelmingly driven by the service-wide vote, which accounts for N12.83 trillion, leaving only a fraction of the total for the ministry's core activities.

The budget provides N2.19 trillion for personnel costs, N1.53 trillion for overhead expenditure and N9.56 trillion for capital projects.

Works ministry gets N3.59tn

The ministry of works emerged as the largest infrastructure-focused ministry in the 2026 budget with an allocation of N3.59 trillion.

Unlike the finance and budget ministries, most of its allocation is directed toward capital development. Only N12.6 billion is earmarked for personnel costs, while N35.5 billion is set aside for overhead expenditure, reflecting the ministry's strong focus on road and other infrastructure projects.