On the macroeconomic front, a new assessment by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) indicates that delays in releasing capital funds significantly slowed Nigeria’s investment momentum in 2025.
Speaking at an Executive Roundtable on the 2026 Budget, Kenneth Erikume, a Partner at PwC, warned that the weak execution of capital expenditure has created a time reset on Nigeria’s ambition to build a $1 trillion economy.
He noted that the rollover of the 2024 budget into 2025 complicated economic planning and disrupted project timelines.
“The bigger challenge has not been deficits, but the weak execution of capital expenditure,” Erikume stated.
He added that with public debt hovering around N152 trillion, borrowing remains unavoidable in 2026 but must be matched with efficient revenue mobilization.
To address these systemic delays, President Bola Tinubu has directed a transition to a single annual budget cycle beginning in April 2026.
This reform aims to eliminate overlapping budgets that have historically distorted planning and weakened accountability.