The Federal Government has earmarked N962.83 bn for the procurement of sport utility vehicles and empowerment projects in the 2026 Appropriation Act, an amount that exceeds the combined allocations to seven key federal ministries, according to a review of the budget by civic technology organization Tracka, ABNTV reports.
In its analysis of the 2026 Federal Government budget, Tracka said the allocation comprised N15.13 billion for the procurement of 39 SUVs and N947.70 billion for 2,579 empowerment projects, bringing the total to N962.83 billion.
The civic organization noted that the amount surpassed the combined N960.27bn appropriated to the Federal Ministries of Industry, Trade and Investment; Housing and Urban Development; Women Affairs; Justice; Livestock Development; Aviation and Aerospace Development; and Petroleum Resources.
According to the group, the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment received N156.8bn in the 2026 budget; Housing, N145.3bn; Women Affairs, N169.39bn; Justice, N150.7bn; Livestock Development, N177.6bn; and Aviation and Aerospace Development, N87.3bn, while Petroleum Resources was allocated N73.1bn.
Tracka expressed concern over what it described as a lack of transparency surrounding many of the empowerment projects.
It stated, “Yet, only 70 of the 2,579 empowerment projects have clearly identified implementation locations.”
The organization argued that the omission raised fundamental accountability questions regarding project implementation and oversight.
It asked, “How can citizens track projects with no stated location? How can oversight institutions verify implementation? How can taxpayers know who ultimately benefits from these allocations?”
Beyond the absence of project locations, Tracka said the projects were spread across 184 implementing agencies, including several institutions whose statutory mandates do not ordinarily cover empowerment programs.
According to its findings, the Federal Cooperative College, Oji River, was assigned 393 projects worth N127.1bn, while the National Agricultural Development Fund was allocated six projects valued at N89.5bn. The Federal College of Horticulture, Dadin-Kowa, Gombe, received 216 projects worth N88.1bn, while the Federal Cooperative College, Ibadan, was assigned 94 projects valued at N36.9bn.
A review of the budget document based on Tracka’s analysis shows that the largest single empowerment allocation was N89.09 billion for the Renewed Hope Fertilizer Support Program under the National Agricultural Development Fund.
Other high-value allocations include N14bn for the procurement and distribution of economic empowerment equipment and utility vehicles through the Federal Cooperative College, Oji River, N14bn for youth empowerment programmes under the Federal Ministry of Youth Development, and another N14bn for youth empowerment and medical outreach under the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.
The document also contains numerous allocations for the procurement of buses, tricycles, motorcycles, electric vehicles, sewing machines, fertilizers, vocational equipment, grants, and other empowerment items across different agencies and regions.
While stressing that empowerment initiatives are not inherently problematic, Tracka said they could produce meaningful social and economic benefits if properly designed and transparently implemented.
