The 2024 fiscal allocation includes a total of N13,805,814,220 designated for the maintenance of former presidents, vice presidents, heads of state, Chiefs of General Staff, retired heads of service, permanent secretaries, as well as retired heads of government agencies and parastatals.
Beneficiaries encompass former Nigerian leaders such as Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Goodluck Jonathan, and Muhammadu Buhari, along with ex-vice-presidents Atiku Abubakar, Namadi Sambo, and Prof Yemi Osinbajo. The list extends to ex-military Heads of State, General Yakubu Gowon, General Abdusalami Abubakar, former dictator General Ibrahim Babangida, and former Chief of General Staff Commodore Ebitu Ukiwe (retd.).
The budget also allocates N1 trillion for public service wage adjustments, covering government Ministries, Departments, and Agencies, including arrears of promotions, salary increases, severance benefits, and minimum wage-related adjustments.
Within the 2024 budget, N2.3 billion is designated for the entitlements of former presidents/heads of state and vice presidents/chief of general staff, while N10.5 billion is proposed for benefits to retired heads of service, permanent secretaries, and professors. Additionally, N1 billion is allocated for severance benefits to retired heads of government agencies and parastatals.
Other notable allocations comprise N65 billion for the Presidential Amnesty Programme, N1 billion for the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Energy, and N108 billion for unspecified special projects.
The federal government is also proposing N40 billion to settle electricity debts owed to power distribution companies by all MDAs, with previous budgets indicating N27 billion in 2022 and N40 billion in 2023 for the same purpose, though it remains unclear if payments were made.
In the sectoral allocation details of the N8.7 trillion capital component of the N27.5 trillion 2024 budget, the Ministries of Works, Finance, Education, and Defence lead with significant allocations. Notably, the Ministry of Works is allotted N521.3 billion, followed by the Ministry of Finance with N519.9 billion, and the Ministry of Defence earmarked for N308.2 billion. Additional allocations include N304.4 billion for the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, and N265.4 billion for the Education Ministry.
The lion’s share of the capital component extends to various sectors, including the Ministry of Power (N264.2 billion), government-owned enterprises (N820.9 billion), Tertiary Education Trust Fund (N665 billion), Housing and Urban Development Ministry (N96.9 billion), Water Resources Ministry (N87.7 billion), and Police Affairs Ministry (N69 billion).
Statutory transfers include N198 billion for the National Assembly, N324.8 billion for the Niger Delta Development Commission, N251.4 billion for the Universal Basic Education Board, N165 billion for the National Judicial Council, N126 billion for the North East Development Commission, and N125.7 billion for the Basic Health Care Provision Fund.
Capital supplementation encompasses N100 billion for zonal intervention (constituency projects for federal lawmakers), N108 billion for special projects, N200 billion for contingency (capital), N685.6 billion for aid and grants funded projects, and N100 billion for the National Social Investment Programme Agency.
