SEVERAL critical projects proposed by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare in 2025 are yet to be implemented due to the lack of funding, thereby inflicting pains and agony on hospital patients.
In 2025, the Ministry of Health proposed a number of projects that were targeted at improving the lives of Nigerians. Some of these projects include: the procurement of 10,000 vials anti-snake venom; procurement of 1 billion units of pont of care sickle scan for childhood screening of sickle cell disease, as well as the distribution of 150,000 units of locally manufactured POC blood glucose monitoring and diagnostic kits.
Other projects that are yet to be implemented due to the lack of funding are: Procurement of hepatitis test kits, as well as acquisition of cancer equipment in teaching hospitals in Benin, University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital (ABUTH), Federal Teaching Hospital Ido-Ekiti (FETH), Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), and the Federal Teaching Hospital, Katsina.
Others are: Equipment of maternity complex and operation theatre in the North-East Zonal VVF Centre; equipment of the Federal University Teaching Hospital Lafia Wukari, Taraba State; procurement of antidote for heavy metal poisioning; procurement of rapid kits tests for malaria around the nation, as well as the equipment of federal teaching hospitals in Ondo and Kaduna states.
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According to trusted insider sources in the ministry, these projects have freezed as the President Bola Tinubu-led government could not implement half of the 2025 budget and therefore could not release funding for the the critical projects.
2024, 2025 projects stall
In November, Economy Post had reported that one month to the end of 2025, President Bola Tinubu’s government was yet to implement the 2024 budget fully and had left this year’s fiscal plan in limbo, stalling several programmes that should uplift the lives of citizens.
The newsaper cited some Budget Office of Nigeria insiders who said that the Tinubu administration was yet to fully implement the 2024 budget at that time, with one of them noting that “the government will begin the implementation of 2025 budget early next year.”
To corroborate Economy Post‘s report, The Punch reported on Tuesday that the Nigerian government had directed ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) to carry over 70 percent of their 2025 capital budget into the 2026 fiscal year.
This directive is contained in the 2026 Abridged Budget Call Circular issued by the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning and circulated to all ministers, service chiefs, heads of agencies and top government officials in Abuja, the newspaper said.
The circular said, “MDAs are to upload 70 per cent of their 2025 FGN Budget to continue in FY2026. All such rollover and uploads MUST be in line with the immediate needs of the country as well as government’s development priorities that aligns with the policy direction of the new administration which hinges on National Security, the Economy, Education, Health, Agriculture, Infrastructure, Power & Energy as well as social safety nets, women & youth empowerment.”
MTEF unveiled
The Bola Tunubu-led administration on Wednesday unveiled the 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) for transmission to the National Assembly.
MTEF outlines Nigeria’s key economic benchmarks, projected revenues, and fiscal direction for the next three years.
Under the new framework, the Nigerian government is projecting crude oil production of 2.06 million barrels per day (mbpd), though a more conservative 1.8mbpd will serve as the benchmark for budget planning. The crude oil price benchmark was set at $64 per barrel, while the naira is expected to average N1,512/$1 in 2026.
The government is projecting revenue of N34.33 trillion for the 2026 fiscal year. The implication of the 2026 budget assumptions is that the Nigerian government understood how unreallistic its 2025 oil price assumption was and has tried to correct it. However, it remains adamant on oil output of 2.06 million barrels per day, despite falling short of that in 2025.
In 2025, the Nigerian government projected an average crude oil production of 2.06mbpd, which was a significant increase from the 1.5 mbpd recorded in 2024. The oil price benchmark stood at $75 per barrel, slightly lower than the $79.9 per barrel average in 2024.
Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Mr Atiku Bagudu, revealed these numbers to newsmen after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting chaired by President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Mr Bagudu said that macroeconomic reforms currently taking hold must be sustained to unlock stronger, long-term economic growth.
“For the first time, a target oil production as well as a benchmark production figure were adopted. The target is 2.06mbpd, but for revenue prudence we are using 1.8mbpd for the 2026 budget,” he said.
The Nigerian government also approved an oil price benchmark of $64 per barrel and an exchange rate of N1,512/$ for 2026, Mr Bagudu said, noting that the exchange rate assumption considered the uncertainty that typically preceded an election year.
He disclosed that Nigeria’s projected revenue from all sources stood at N34.33 trillion, including a N4.98 trillion in independent revenue. This, he noted, was 16 percent lower than the 2025 budget estimate.
