By Nana Musa
Mr Taiwo Oyedele, Minister of State for Finance, has said reports suggesting large-scale diversion of federation earnings misrepresented World Bank’s findings in its latest Nigeria Development Update findings and reflected poor understanding of Nigeria’s fiscal system.
Oyedele said this while dismissing reports alleging hidden spending and diversion of federation revenue.
The Minister, in a statement on Sunday in Abuja described the report as misinterpretations of the World Bank Nigeria Development Update.
Oyedele noted that deductions by the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) were wrongly labelled as waste or missing funds in some reports.
Oyedele explained that FAAC deductions cover statutory transfers, security spending, investments, cost of collection and refunds to Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
He said transfers and refunds to states and other tiers of government were legitimate fiscal obligations, not leakages or hidden expenditures.
The minister also criticised selective use of outdated data by some commentators, saying recent reforms were ignored in their analysis.
He noted that the World Bank acknowledged ongoing fiscal reforms, including a 2026 Executive Order to improve petroleum revenue remittances and enhance transparency.
Oyedele said the reforms were expected to increase distributable revenue by about 0.4 per cent of Gross Domestic Product annually.
He added that the report presented a positive outlook, highlighting broad-based economic growth across sectors.
According to him, inflation is gradually declining due to deliberate policy actions of government.
He also cited improvements in Nigeria’s external reserves and a current account surplus.
The minister said debt indicators had improved, including a reduction in the debt-to-GDP ratio for the first time in over a decade.
Oyedele maintained that the World Bank report did not suggest fiscal collapse but affirmed that ongoing reforms were yielding results.
He said sustaining and deepening reforms would help translate macroeconomic gains into inclusive growth.
The minister reiterated government’s commitment to fiscal transparency, revenue mobilisation and efficient public spending.
He urged media organisations and stakeholders to report fiscal matters responsibly to avoid misleading narratives.
(NAN)