FG Allocated N732bn to Vague Empowerment Projects in 2024 Budget, Says Tracka

Tracka, a subsidiary of BudgIT, has reported that Nigeria allocated N732 billion to vague empowerment projects, exceeding the N646.5 billion allocated to health projects in the 2024 national budget. Ayomide Ladipo, Head of Tracka, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.

Tracka emphasized that the empowerment projects are ambiguous and difficult to track, suggesting that the substantial funds allocated to these projects could have been better used to address the gaps in Nigeria’s health sector, which has the second-highest child mortality rate in the world.

Tracka accused the empowerment projects of being a means to siphon public resources, noting that the National Assembly included 7,447 projects valued at N2.24 trillion in the 2024 budget. The report revealed that over 2,558 projects worth N624 billion were allocated to agencies outside their mandate.

Tracka urged anti-graft agencies in Nigeria to investigate these anomalies in the 2024 budget to prevent diversion, misappropriation, and embezzlement. They highlighted that empowerment projects, which initially were part of constituency projects, have now permeated capital projects through insertions by the National Assembly.

For instance, the National Assembly inserted 7,447 projects worth N2.24 trillion in the 2024 budget. Tracka pointed out that over 2,558 projects valued at N624 billion were allocated to agencies outside their mandate. Examples include the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) being allocated N5 billion for the procurement and distribution of official vehicles to selected traditional rulers, and the Nigeria Institute of Oceanography and Marine Research (NiOMR) being allocated N2.32 billion to construct a 3.5km road.

BudgIT’s Country Director, Gabriel Okeowo, commented on Tracka’s findings, stating, “The implications of assigning projects to agencies outside of their mandate are that it undermines monitoring, evaluation, and the sustainability of these projects. These agencies lack the expertise and personnel to ensure quality service delivery, leading to under-delivery and a colossal waste of taxpayers’ money and scarce resources.”

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu signed the N28.7 trillion 2024 budget into law in January this year.