BudgIT calls out ministry, budget office for violating fiscal transparency law

BudgIT, a leading civic-tech organisation advocating for transparency in Nigeria’s public finance, has accused the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Budget Office of the Federation of flouting the Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2007, by failing to publish Quarterly Budget Implementation Reports.

In a release by BudgIT’s Group Senior Communications Associate, Nancy Odimegwu, and made available to PUNCH Online on Wednesday, the group described the omission as a breach of law, a departure from established practice, and a setback to transparency reforms championed by previous administrations.

Citing the Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2007, Budgetary Execution and Achievement of Targets, BudgIT said the Minister of Finance is mandated to publish BIRs in mass and electronic media, including the ministry’s website, within 30 days after each quarter.

BIRs reports are expected to detail the implementation of the annual budget and offer critical insights into government spending and the delivery of public goods and services.

However, BudgIT said that the government has not published a single BIR since at least Q2 2024, leaving nearly four reports overdue by Q2 2025.

According to the NGO, the breach marks a sharp contrast to the previous administration, which consistently released at least three BIRs annually.

It said, “Budget Implementation Reports are not only a requirement of the law and established practice, they are an indication of a government’s willingness to be transparent and to provide evidence of its spending.

“The proof of this spending is crucial to assess the quality of implementation of its budget and, more broadly, the quality of the delivery of public goods and services.

“Public sector accounting principles emphasise the need to publish and disseminate financial information as a matter of professional practice and to secure the engagement of the public, a significant stakeholder in public financial management.

“It is troubling that the current administration has ignored the law and refused to publish a key public document.

“It would have been preferred that the current administration build on the foundation of previous governments and, in addition to regular implementation reports, publish and disseminate the Federal Cash Plan Disbursement Schedule, per section 26 of the Fiscal Responsibility Act.

“This poor state of affairs is all the more compelling, considering the current administration has just concluded spending on the 2024 Appropriation (though it is unclear if the 2024 Supplementary.

“The refusal to publish these reports undermines transparency and accountability. Citizens have a right to know how public funds are spent. This is not just a legal obligation but a cornerstone of democracy and adherence to the rule of law.”

BudgIT also criticised the government for neglecting other transparency mechanisms, such as the OpenTreasury.gov platform, which once provided daily, weekly, and monthly federal spending data.

“Perhaps more worrying is the fact that this disposition towards providing public information does not end with Quarterly BIRs but extends to the government’s own public platforms, namely OpenTreasury.gov, which used to be the go-to source of information on daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly spending of the federal government.

“While the platform was not perfect (several government Ministries, Departments and Agencies; spending data was absent, links were broken, and the data was often not machine-readable), it was largely comprehensive and a demonstration of transparency and the willingness of the government to be held accountable. The government has not updated the platform with new information since January 2025,” it added.

The group expressed concern that the absence of BIRs and updated financial data hampers private sector planning, civil society advocacy, and academic research, while signalling to the international community that Nigeria is deviating from global public finance standards.

BudgIT also urged the government to publish the Federal Cash Plan Disbursement Schedule, as required by Section 26 of the Fiscal Responsibility Act, to build on past transparency efforts.

In a call to action, BudgIT urged President Bola Tinubu and involved ministries to comply with the law and release the overdue reports.