Pate: Only N36m Out of N218bn Was Released to Health Ministry in 2025 Budget

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

The Minister of Health, Prof. Ali Pate has revealed that the ministry only received a paltry sum of ₦36 million out of the ₦218 billion appropriated in the 2025 capital budget.

Pate disclosed this on Monday in Abuja during a 2026 budget defence session with the House Committee on Healthcare Services.

The minister added that the ministry was unable to access certain counterpart funds because of delays in the release of Nigeria’s counterpart contributions.

He stressed that the implementation of the 2025 capital budget was consequently stalled by unforeseen circumstances.

Pate said while the ministry’s entire personnel budget was released and fully expended, the same could not be said of the capital component due largely to the bottom-up cash planning system operated by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.

He noted: “Nigeria’s health sector is guided by Vision 20:2020, the Medium-Term National Development Plan (NDP) 2021–2025, and the National Strategic Health Development Plan (NSHDP) II.”

Pate stressed that the policies and strategies underpinning the 2026 budget are derived from the 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper (MTEF/FSP), which outlines the Federal Government’s development priorities.

He explained that the ministry’s 2026 proposed budget was prepared using the government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), in line with the National Development Plan 2021–2025, which emphasises justification and allocation of resources to projects and programmes based on actual needs.

He added that the proposal aligns with the policy thrust and execution priorities of the federal government, as well as the ministerial deliverables of the administration of President Bola Tinubu.