29 Governors spent ₦1.99 Trillion on travel, allowances, and refreshments in 9 months – Report

An analysis of budget performance across 29 Nigerian states has revealed that governors spent ₦1.994 trillion on recurrent expenditures, including refreshments, allowances, travel, and utilities, in the first nine months of 2024.

The findings, according to The Punch is based on Q1–Q3 budget performance reports, also showed that these states secured ₦533.29 billion in loans and allocated ₦658.93 billion to debt servicing during the period.

However, they underperformed in revenue generation, collecting ₦1.92 trillion in internally generated revenue (IGR) against a target of ₦2.868 trillion, resulting in a ₦948.28 billion shortfall.

Despite a 40% increase in statutory allocations from the Federation Account due to subsidy removal and forex market unification, these states struggled to balance their budgets.

Key highlights include Lagos, Plateau, and Delta States spending the most on operating expenses at ₦375.19 billion, ₦144.87 billion, and ₦121.54 billion, respectively.

Niger and Katsina States were the highest borrowers, obtaining ₦79.09 billion and ₦72.89 billion in loans.

In revenue generation, Lagos led with ₦912.17 billion, followed by Rivers (₦269.18 billion) and Delta (₦97.02 billion).

However, several states, including Taraba and Yobe, recorded significant deficits due to overspending on recurrent expenses and underperforming in revenue generation.

The analysis underscores concerns over financial management and its impact on the citizens’ standard of living.