Delivered By: HIS EXCELLENCY, ASIWAJU BOLA AHMED TINUBU, GCFR
PRESIDENT, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA
AT THE JOINT SESSION OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY, ABUJA
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2023
— The Vice President, Senator Kashim Ibrahim Shettima, GCON
— The Senate President, Distinguished Senator Godswill Akpabio, GCON
— The Right Honourable Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas
— APC National Chairman, His Excellency, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje
— Executive Governors here present
— Distinguished Leaders and Members of the National Assembly
— Secretary to the Government of the Federation
— Chief of Staff to the President
— Other Senior Government Officials here present
— Gentlemen of the Press
— Ladies and Gentlemen
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In furtherance of my sacred duties and obligations as President of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria, it is my honour to be here today to present my
administration’s 2024 Budget Proposal to this Joint Session of the 10 th
National Assembly. This moment is especially profound and significant to me
because it is my first annual budgetary presentation to the National Assembly.
Distinguished Senators and Honourable Members of the National Assembly, I
commend your swift consideration and passage of the 2023 Supplementary
Appropriation Bills and the 2024-2026 Medium Term Expenditure Framework
and Fiscal Strategy Paper. Your prompt action underscores your devotion to
economic development and to the greater welfare of our people. It also
highlights your desire to work in close collaboration with the Executive branch.
We do not serve ourselves. We must always strive to work together to serve
and benefit the people of our beloved country.
I am confident that the National Assembly will continue to work closely with us
to ensure that deliberations on the 2024 Budget are thorough but also
concluded with reasonable dispatch. Our goal is for the Appropriation Act to
come into effect on the 1 st of January 2024.
It is, by now, a matter of recorded history that my very first fiscal intervention
as President of this great nation was to end the fuel subsidy regime which had
proven to be so harmful to the overall health of our national economy. The
second was to negotiate and subsequently present a supplementary budget to
enable my government to fund the items needed to restore macro-economic
stability and mitigate the harsh impact of subsidy removal.
The third was to secure a second supplementary budget, this time to enable
us to keep our promises to promote national security, invest in infrastructure
and provide much needed support to the most vulnerable households in our
society.
In swearing-in my cabinet and reflecting on the unique challenges facing us, I
invited the Ministers to imagine that we are attempting to draw water from a
dry well. Today, I stand before you to present our Budget of Renewed Hope; a
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budget which will go further than ever before in cementing macro-economic
stability, reducing the deficit, increasing capital spending and allocation to
reflect the eight priority areas of this Administration. The budget we now
present constitutes the foundation upon which we shall erect the future of this
great nation.
PREVAILING ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT
1. Economic conditions remain challenging both abroad and at home. Despite
lingering Post-Covid supply and production bottlenecks, armed conflict in
various parts of the world and restrictive monetary policies in major
economies, we expect global growth to hover around 3.0 percent in 2024. This
relative low rate has significant implications for our economy due to our
current reliance on importation.
2. Distinguished Senators, Honourable Members: despite the global headwinds,
the Nigerian economy has proven resilient, maintaining modest but positive
growth over the past twelve months.
3. Inflation has trended upward due to weak global conditions. To contain the
rising domestic prices, we will ensure effective coordination of fiscal and
monetary policy measures, and collaborate with sub-national governments to
address structural factors driving inflation in Nigeria.
4. The Budget proposal meets our goal of completing critical infrastructure
projects which will help address structural problems in the economy by
lowering the costs of doing business for companies and the cost of living for
the average person, The Honourable Minister of Budget and Economic
Planning will provide full details of this proposal.
PERFORMANCE OF THE 2023 BUDGET
5. Distinguished Senators and Honourable Members, an aggregate revenue of
11.045 trillion naira was projected to fund the 2023 Budget of 24.82 trillion
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naira with a deficit of about 6.1 percent of GDP.
6. As of September 30, the Federal Government’s actual aggregate revenue
inflow was 8.65 trillion naira, approximately 96 percent of the targeted 8.28
trillion naira.
7. Despite the challenges, we continue to meet our obligations.
THEME AND PRIORITIES OF THE 2024 BUDGET
Distinguished Senators, Honourable Members, permit me to highlight key
issues relating to the budget proposals for the next fiscal year. The 2024
Appropriation has been themed the Budget of Renewed Hope. The
proposed Budget seeks to achieve job-rich economic growth, macro-economic
stability, a better investment environment, enhanced human capital
development, as well as poverty reduction and greater access to social
security.
Defence and internal security are accorded top priority. The internal security
architecture will be overhauled to enhance law enforcement capabilities and
safeguard lives, property and investments across the country.
Human capital is the most critical resource for national development.
Accordingly, the budget prioritizes human development with particular
attention to children, the foundation of our nation.
To improve the effectiveness of our budget performance, government will
focus on ensuring value for money, greater transparency and accountability.
In this regard, we will work more closely with development partners and the
private sector.
To address long-standing issues in the education sector, a more sustainable
model of funding tertiary education will be implemented, including the Student
Loan Scheme scheduled to become operational by January 2024.
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A stable macro-economic environment is important to catalyse private
investment and accelerate economic growth. We have and shall continue to
implement business and investment friendly measures for sustainable growth.
We expect the economy to grow by a minimum of 3.76 percent, above the
forecasted world average. Inflation is expected to moderate to 21.4 percent
in 2024.
In preparing the 2024 Budget, our primary objective has been to sustain our
robust foundation for sustainable economic development. A critical focus of
this budget and the medium term expenditure framework is Nigeria's
commitment to a greener future.
Emphasizing public-private partnerships, we have strategically made
provisions to leverage private capital for big-ticket infrastructure projects in
energy, transportation and other sectors. This marks a critical step towards
diversifying our energy mix, enhancing efficiency, and fostering the
development of renewable energy sources. By allocating resources to support
innovative and environmentally conscious initiatives, we aim to position
Nigeria as a regional leader in the global movement towards clean and
sustainable energy.
As we approach COP 28 climate summit, a pivotal moment for global climate
action, I have directed relevant government agencies to diligently work
towards securing substantial funding commitments that will bolster Nigeria's
energy transition.
It is imperative that we seize this opportunity to attract international
partnerships and investments that align with our national goals. I call upon our
representatives to engage proactively to showcase the strides we have made
in the quest to create an enabling environment for sustainable energy
projects.
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Together, we will strive for Nigeria to emerge from COP 28 with tangible
commitments, reinforcing our dedication to a future where energy is not only a
catalyst for development but also a driver of environmental stewardship.
8. Distinguished members of the National Assembly, the revised 2024-2026
Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper
(FSP) sets out the parameters for the 2024 Budget.
9. After a careful review of developments in the world oil market and domestic
conditions, we have adopted a conservative oil price benchmark of 77.96 US
Dollars per barrel and daily oil production estimate of 1.78 million barrels per
day. We have also adopted a Naira to US Dollar exchange rate of 750 naira
per US Dollar for 2024.
10. Accordingly, an aggregate expenditure of 27.5 trillion naira is proposed for
the Federal Government in 2024, of which the non-debt recurrent expenditure
is 9.92 trillion naira while debt service is projected to be 8.25 trillion naira
and capital expenditure is 8.7 trillion naira.
11. Nigeria remains committed to meeting its debt obligations. Projected debt
service is 45% of the expected total revenue.
12. Budget deficit is projected at 9.18 trillion naira in 2024 or 3.88 percent of
GDP. This is lower than the 13.78 trillion naira deficit recorded in 2023 which
represents 6.11 percent of GDP.
13. The deficit will be financed by new borrowings totalling 7.83 trillion naira,
298.49 billion naira from Privatization Proceeds and 1.05 trillion naira
drawdown on multilateral and bilateral loans secured for specific development
projects.
14. Our government remains committed to broad-based and shared economic
prosperity. We are reviewing social investment programmes to enhance their
implementation and effectiveness. In particular, the National Social Safety Net
project will be expanded to provide targeted cash transfers to poor and
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vulnerable households. In addition, efforts will made to graduate existing
beneficiaries toward productive activities and employment.
15. We are currently reviewing our tax and fiscal policies. Our target is to increase
the ratio of revenue to GDP from less than 10 percent currently to 18 percent
within the term of this Administration. Government will make efforts to further
contain financial leakages through effective implementation of key public
financial management reforms.
16. Distinguished Senators and Honourable Members, in view of the limited
resources available through the federal budget, we are also exploring Public
Private Partnership arrangements to finance critical infrastructure.
17. We, therefore, invite the private sector to partner with us to ensure that our
fiscal, trade and monetary policies, as well as our developmental programs
and projects succeed in unlocking the latent potential of our people and other
natural endowments, in line with our national aspirations.
18. Distinguished Senators and Honourable Members, this Budget presentation
would be incomplete without commending the patriotic resolve of the 10 th
National Assembly to collaborate with the Executive on our mission to renew
hope and deliver on our promises to the Nigerian people. I assure you of the
strong commitment of the Executive to sustain and deepen the relationship
with the National Assembly.
19. As you consider the 2024 Budget estimates, we trust that the legislative
review process will be conducted with a view to sustaining our desired return
to a predictable January-December fiscal year.
20. I have no doubt that you will be guided by the interest of all Nigerians. We
must ensure that only projects and programs with equitable benefits are
allowed into the 2024 Budget. Additionally, only projects and programs which
are in line with the sectoral mandates of MDAs and which are capable of
realizing the vision of our Government should be included in the budget.
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21. As a Government, we are committed to improving the lot of our people and
delivering on our promises to them. The 2024 Budget has the potential to
boost performance, promote the development of Micro, Small and Medium-
sized Enterprises, enhance security and public safety, and improve the
general living conditions of our people.
22. In closing, I am confident that these budgetary allocations and directives will
set Nigeria on a transformative path towards a sustainable and resilient
energy future, fostering economic growth, job creation, and environmental
preservation.
23. It is with great pleasure, therefore, that I lay before this distinguished Joint
Session of the National Assembly, the 2024 Budget Proposals of the Federal
Government of Nigeria, titled The Renewed Hope Budget.
24. I thank you most sincerely for your attention. May we collectively chart the
course towards a brighter and cleaner future for our great nation.
25. May God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
