BudgIT announced that its open-source service delivery monitoring tool, Tracka, has found that the federal government’s 2024 budget includes N732.5 billion for empowerment initiatives.
The organization said in a statement on Monday that the N646.5 billion allotted to health initiatives is less than the amount for empowerment programmes, which it called ambiguous.
It continued by saying that even though Nigeria had the second-highest incidence of child mortality in the world in 2023, the government had shown no signs of addressing these serious issues since the health sector was not given priority in the 2024 budget.Â
“Tracka claims that empowerment projects are ambiguous and difficult to track due to their nature. They are also utilised as a conduit to transfer public resources to party loyalists, resulting in the misappropriation of public monies,” the organization stated.
4,440 initiatives aimed at empowering
BudgIT said that 4,440 empowerment initiatives were found in the 2024 budget by its Tracka. Although empowerment initiatives were traditionally restricted to constituency projects, the National Assembly’s insertions have allowed them to progressively infiltrate capital projects over time, the report noted.
“For example, the National Assembly included 7,447 projects valued at N2.24 trillion in the 2024 budget. Tracka sees this as a worrying tendency, given the country’s massive infrastructure shortfall and financial deficits,” it stated. Â
Incorrect allocation
According to the organisation, additional budget research revealed that more than 2,558 projects totaling N624 billion were given to entities that did not have the necessary authority.
“An example is the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN)-ERGP20241489-allocated N5 billion for the Procurement and Distribution of Official Vehicles to Selected Traditional Rulers in the Six Geopolitical Zones in Nigeria (Multiple Lots).”
“Another is the Nigeria Institute of Oceanography and Marine Research (NiOMR)-ERGP20245718-allocated N2.32 billion to construct a 3.5km Road from Methodist Church lbu to the Eri River,” according to the report.Â
Gabriel Okeowo, the country director for BudglT, voiced alarm over this development in his comments on the findings. He claims that giving projects to organizations that are not within their purview has negative effects on the sustainability, monitoring, and assessment of these initiatives.
“These agencies are understaffed and lack the necessary experience to guarantee high-quality service delivery for these projects, resulting in under-delivery and yet another massive waste of taxpayer funds and scarce resources,” the speaker continued.
BudgIT demanded that anti-graft organizations look into the irregularities in the 2024 budget to prevent embezzlement, misuse, and diversion. To guarantee that Nigerians receive the most benefit from public funding, it further called on elected officials, Ministries, Departments, and Agencies to guarantee the proper implementation of these initiatives and to promptly update the public.
