“How We’ll Determine Allocations of 2025 Budget,” Presidency Opens Up

• The federal government has questioned the performance and relevance of some government agencies
• Femi Gbajabiamila expressed concern over funding on Thursday, August 22, and clarified that the 2025 federal budget will be strategically allocated based on needs assessment
• The chief of staff to the president also hinted at possible mergers or eliminations of underperforming agencies

Legit.ng journalist Esther Odili has over two years of experience covering political parties and movements

State House, Abuja - President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's led federal government will allocate funds in the 2025 budget based on needs assessment and the prioritisation of essential projects and agencies.

2025 Budget: “Resources are limited”

The chief of staff to the president, Femi Gbajabiamila, stated this on Thursday, August 22, while addressing journalists after a one-day fact-finding tour of government agencies under the State House, Abuja.

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According to Gbajabiamila, the limited resources available make it imperative to prioritise, and the funds allocated to agencies will be based on actual requirements and needs, Daily Trust reported.

As reported by The Nigerian Tribune, the chief of staff questioned the current funding and performance of various agencies, urging a reconsideration of their mandates and relevance to the administration’s vision and the Renewed Hope Agenda.

He hinted at the possibility of merging or scrapping underperforming agencies to optimise resources.

Gbajabiamila said:

‘In any country in the world, resources are limited. For us it is about prioritising. Where are we so far? What have the agencies done? How have they measured up to their mandate,s and how important are their mandates in terms of the vision of this administration and the Renewed Hope Agenda?

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”A lot of agencies are not properly funded. Do we merge some of these agencies, do we scrap some? I’m not talking about the State House agencies. In 2025, we are not going to budget in a vacuum. We will budget based on needs assessment,” the former speaker of the House of Reps added.

LG autonomy: FG, governors finally reach 3-month agreement

In another development, Legit.ng reported that the federal government was yet to release funds to the 774 local government chairmen, but it had reached an agreement regarding payment with the state governors.

Meanwhile, the agreement for a three-month delay on LG allocations raised concerns about how local governments would manage their operations and salary payments during the period.

However, the minister of finance, Wale Edun, calmed the tension and explained FG's next step in the matter amid negotiations on payment by states.

Proofread by Kola Muhammed, journalist and copyeditor at Legit.ng

Source: Legit.ng