The management of revenue allocations by state governments has been scrutinised by the Nigerian Labour Congress, activists and economists as 36 state governments received a total allocation of N5.22 trillion in 2024.
The findings revealed that the allocation to the three tiers of government increased from N4.99 trillion to N15.12 trillion in the 12 months to 2024. This represents a 49.24% increase over the ₦10.14 trillion paid to meet 2023 liabilities.
A review of monthly reports published by the committee revealed that the 36 state governments received the highest allocation of ₦5.22 trillion, which is 34.5% of the total allocation of ₦15.14 trillion across the three levels of government.
This was followed by local governments with a revenue allocation of ₦4.97 trillion and the central government with a revenue allocation of ₦4.95 trillion.
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In contrast, the allocation to the states increased by 45.5% from ₦3.585 trillion in 2023, while the allocation to local governments increased by 96% and the allocation to the central government increased by 25.6%.
However, if LG allocates an additional 4.95 trillion, the price will rise to 10.19 trillion, accounting for 67.3 per cent of the total allocation. The Federal Budget Committee allocates its revenues to the Federation Account, which contains various accounts specific to one or more departments/types of business.
The majority of the revenues received by federal, state and local governments at FAAC meetings come from oil exports, taxes and other statutory fees.
Amid an increase in allocation to subnational government, the NLC has lamented that the masses have been deliberately neglected despite the increasing revenue received shared by state governors from the Federation Account Allocation Committee.
The Deputy President of the NLC Political Commission, Prof. Theophilus Ndubuaku, raised the concerns in an interview. The Union called for an end to governors’ constitutional immunity describing their performance as “below average.” It also emphasised that despite states receiving 65 per cent of federally allocated resources, most governors failed to deliver meaningful development.
