Data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, in its economic report for fourth quarter 2024, has shown that the President Bola Tinubu-led federal government failed to meet revenue target for the quarter.
According to the document cited by SaharaReporters, “federally collected revenue saw a 5.31% increase compared to the previous quarter, though it still fell short of the benchmark by 19.67%.”
The report further noted that the “FGN retained revenue was 10.40% higher than in the preceding quarter but remained significantly below the target, standing 48.57% short of the expected figure.”
“On the expenditure side, aggregate expenditure increased by 2.22% compared to Q3 2024, though it was 22.09% lower than the quarterly target.
“As a result, the fiscal deficit narrowed by 3.61% when compared to the previous quarter, but widened by 34.44% relative to the proportionate quarterly target,” the report said.
It was further noted that “in terms of gross federation account earnings, the period saw an improvement, largely driven by higher receipts from oil revenue.
“The provisional gross federation account receipts stood at ₦7.23 trillion, reflecting a 5.31% increase from the preceding quarter, but still 19.67% below the benchmark.”
According to the CBN Report, oil revenue specifically saw a significant rise of 53.59%, reaching ₦2trillion compared to Q3 2024.
Despite this increase, it fell short of the quarterly target by 62.19%.
Nigeria has struggled to fund its budget over time, relying heavily on loans, which had, over time, led to high debt servicing figures.
The CBN report highlighted the challenge of debt by Nigeria.
“At end-September 2024, public debt stock remained within the 70.00 per cent threshold for Market-Access Countries,” the report read
“Total public debt outstanding stood at ₦142.32 trillion (51.29% of GDP), at end-September 2024, and was 5.97 per cent, higher than the level.”
Stay ahead with the latest updates! Join The ConclaveNG on WhatsApp and Telegram for real-time news alerts, breaking stories, and exclusive content delivered straight to your phone. Don’t miss a headline — subscribe now!
