Nigeria’s cabinet has signed off on a medium-term fiscal plan that projects spending of around 54.5 trillion Naira ($36.05 billion) in 2026, its Minister of Budget and Planning said on Wednesday.
The plan forecasts total federal revenue at 34.33 trillion Naira ($22.71 billion), leaving a 20.1 trillion Naira ($13.29 billion) deficit, or 3.61% of gross domestic product (GDP), with debt service costs estimated at 15.9 trillion Naira ($10.52 billion), Atiku Bagudu told reporters after a cabinet meeting in Abuja.
Non-recurrent debt expenditure is set at 15.27 trillion Naira ($10.10 billion), underscoring the fiscal strain on Africa’s most populous country.
Oil, which accounts for most of the government’s foreign exchange, is benchmarked at $64.85 per barrel, with production expected to average 1.84 million barrels per day (bpd), well below a 2.06 million bpd target, Bagudu said.
The framework assumes an exchange rate of 1 512 Naira per Dollar and GDP growth of 4.68%, he said.
–Reuters–
