Abuja, Sept. 29, 2026 – Senator Abubakar Bagudu, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, has called for scaling up the size of the federal government’s annual budgets.
The minister made the call in Abuja on Monday while speaking at the 2026 Workshop for the Senate Press Corps.
The theme of the workshop was: “Leveraging Legislative Oversight and Media Collaboration to Safeguard the National Budget from Unlawful Insertions.”
Bagudu said the country could not achieve its ambition of becoming a $1 trillion economy while operating one of the smallest budgets in the world.
He advised that Nigeria must stop preparing budgets merely according to available resources.
“Perhaps the starting point for this discussion should be: What should the national budget be? Because without starting from there, maybe we will not reach the right conclusion.
“I don’t have one definitive answer, but I would say that of the 10 most populous countries in the world, Nigeria has the smallest national budget,” he said.
Bagudu warned against budgeting only on what the government could immediately afford.
“How can we, as a step towards that wider dream, generate a $1 trillion economy in the next four years? And not just a $1 trillion economy, but a $1 trillion economy that includes everyone,” he said.
“If I decide to cut my coat according to my size, then I should remain in the same shape. Maybe I will not even have the spare capacity to sew a cloth for another person,” he said.
He urged the media to help drive the conversation further.
“Should we continue with a budget that gives our populace one of the smallest budgets among comparable countries? Or should we imagine how we can mobilise more resources?” he asked.
Bagudu cited Brazil as an example of large federation like Nigeria whose 2025 budget is at least 25 times the size of Nigeria’s budget.
“So, do I expect to achieve the same outcomes as Brazil? Is it that these needs do not exist in Nigeria? I believe they do.”
Bagudu also called for public understanding on public borrowing as “what the law allows you to borrow is both limited and a function of public confidence.”
“If people do not support borrowing, the National Assembly will not allow borrowing,” he said.
Bagudu suggested a balanced debate on transparency in public disclosures on budget, stressing that legitimate strategic considerations could limit how much detail the government publishes.
“I may be fighting a war in the area of security, but how much of my security policy should I make public? Not because I am doing something wrong, but because there are legitimate strategic considerations,” he said.