FG defends delay in budget reports over extended 2025 appropriation cycle

The Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Tanimu Yakubu, has defended the delay in the publication of recent Quarterly Budget Implementation Reports, saying Nigeria’s fiscal year is determined by law and not strictly by the January to December calendar cycle.

In a statement issued on Saturday, Yakubu said public concerns over the delayed reports were understandable, but stressed that fiscal administration operates within a constitutional and legislative framework that allows budget implementation periods to be extended.

According to him, “the fiscal year is not necessarily synonymous with the calendar year,” explaining that while the calendar year is fixed from January to December, the fiscal year is “a juridical and legislative creation whose duration, commencement, and terminal date are determined by the extant appropriation framework enacted by law.”

He said the Federal Government’s fiscal operations have, at different times, gone beyond the standard 12-month cycle through statutory extensions, supplementary appropriations, continuing resolutions and rollover authorisations.

Yakubu disclosed that the latest delay in releasing the budget implementation reports was linked to the repeal and re-enactment of the 2025 Appropriation Act, which was concluded in December 2025, as well as the extension of the implementation period of the 2025 budget to June 2026.

“The recent adjustment in the publication schedule arose principally from the Repeal and Re-enactment process of the 2025 Appropriation Act concluded in December 2025, together with the subsequent extension of the implementation period of the 2025 Budget to June 2026,” he stated.

He added that the adjustments “effectively extended the operational lifespan of the 2025 Budget beyond the conventional twelve-calendar-month framework ordinarily associated with a fiscal year.”

The Budget Office boss said the practice was consistent with global public finance systems, citing the United States and India as examples of countries whose fiscal years differ from the calendar year.

He further argued that Sections 80 and 81 of the 1999 Constitution do not impose a rigid 12-month implementation cycle, but instead require that public withdrawals be backed by legislative approval through appropriation laws.

Yakubu also referenced judicial decisions, including the Supreme Court case of Attorney-General of Bendel State v. Attorney-General of the Federation, to support the principle of legislative control over public expenditure.

According to him, budget extensions have also been used in Nigeria and other countries during periods of economic disruption, including after the COVID-19 pandemic, to prevent the abandonment of projects and maintain economic stability.

The Budget Office said it was currently carrying out reconciliations involving revenue reviews, expenditure alignment, debt updates and inter-agency coordination to ensure the accuracy of the outstanding reports.

Yakubu assured that the pending Quarterly Budget Implementation Reports “are being finalized and will be released in phases over the coming weeks.”

He added that the office was strengthening its digital reporting systems and institutional coordination to improve the timeliness and quality of fiscal reporting.

“The Federal Government remains firmly committed to the principles of open budgeting, fiscal discipline, transparency, constitutional compliance, and accountable public financial management in accordance with global best practices,” the statement added.