2025 budget passes second reading, National Assembly adjourns till Jan 14

The Senate and the House of Representatives, at their separate plenaries on Thursday, passed for second reading the N49.7tn ‘Restoration’ 2025 budget presented on Wednesday by President Bola Tinubu.

The budget was passed on Thursday after various deliberations on the bill’s general principles by senators and Reps members who applauded the President for his good intentions for the country.

In the Senate, the budget was passed and referred to the Committee on Appropriations after being put to a voice vote by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, who presided over the session.

The Committee on Appropriations is chaired by Senator Solomon Adeola.

President Bola Tinubu had on Wednesday presented to a joint session of the National Assembly the budget which he named, “Restoration budget, securing peace and building prosperity.”

Tinubu commended the resilience of Nigerians amid growing economic indices.

The has a revenue projection of N34.82tn to fund the aggregate expenditure of N47.9tn.

In the proposed budget, which has a deficit of N13.0tn, Tinubu earmarked N4.91tn for Defence and Security, N4.06tn for Infrastructure, N3.5tn for Education, and N2.48tn for Health.

The President, in his budget speech, also disclosed that N15.81tn is allocated for debt servicing, with salient parameters including 2.06 million barrels of oil production per day, an exchange rate of N1,500 to a US dollar, and an inflation rate of 15%, down from the current 34.6%.

The President said, “The numbers for our 2025 budget proposal tell a bold and exciting story of the direction we are taking to retool and revamp the socio-economic fabric of our society.

“In 2025, we are targeting N34.82tn in revenue to fund the budget.

“Government expenditure in the same year is projected to be N47.90tn, including N15.81tn for debt servicing.

“A total of M13.08tn, or 3.89 percent of GDP, will make up the budget deficit.

“This is an ambitious but necessary budget to secure our future.

“The budget projects inflation will decline from the current rate of 34.6 percent to 15 percent next year, while the exchange rate will improve from approximately N1,700 per US dollar to N1,500, and a base crude oil production assumption of 2.06 million barrels per day (mbpd).

During Thursday’s plenary, the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central), led a debate on the general principles of the 2025 appropriation bill.

Bamidele, in his lead debate, said the budget proposal demonstrated Tinubu’s commitment to stabiliSing the economy, improving lives, and repositioning our country for greater performance.

He said the budget proposal experienced a significant increase of 74.18 percent from the previous year’s budget and that with the increase, it will address infrastructural decay and developmental challenges in the country.

“The 2025 budget has seen a significant increase of 74.18%, reaching N47.9tn in nominal terms, signaling a bold fiscal strategy aimed at addressing persistent infrastructure gaps and development challenges.

“However, in dollar terms, the budget contracted by 23.22%, dropping from $36.7bn in 2024 to $28.18bn in 2025. This reduction in real value limits the potential impact of the budget on economic growth and the population’s well-being,” he said.

Bamidele emphasised that the budget proposal indicated the government’s direction in ensuring a peaceful and secure environment.

The senator noted that when the budget starts implementation next year, the inflation rate will drop from its current rate of 34.6 percent to 15 percent, and the exchange rate will improve from N1,700 to a dollar to N1,400 to a dollar.

He argued that the 2025 budget will “consolidate the key policies instituted to restructure our economy, boost human capital development, increase the volume of trade and investments, bolster oil and gas production, get our manufacturing sector humming again, and ultimately increase the competitiveness of our economy.”

The post 2025 budget passes second reading, National Assembly adjourns till Jan 14 appeared first on 36ng.