President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday signed the 2020 appropriation bill into law thereby returning the country to the January-December budget cycle. (See below the timeline of budget presentation and passage in Nigeria from 1999)
Buhari presented the budget to a joint session of the national assembly on Tuesday, October 8.
The national assembly had on December 5, 2019, passed the budget tagged ‘Budget of sustaining growth and job creation.”
The legislature increased the budget estimates from N10.33 trillion to N10.50 trillion.
A breakdown of the budget shows that N560,470,827,235 was budgeted for statutory transfer; N2,725,498,930,000 for debt servicing; N4,842,974,600,640 for recurrent expenditure; N2,465,418,006,955 for capital expenditure; and N2.28 trillion for fiscal deficit.
“It is my pleasant duty, today, on my 77th birthday, to sign the 2020 Appropriation Bill into law.
“I’m pleased that the National Assembly has expeditiously passed this Bill. Our Federal Budget is now restored to a January-December implementation cycle,” wrote Buhari on his twitter page.
Present at the signing ceremony, which held at the State House were the vice president, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, senate president, Mr. Ahmed Lawan, speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, secretary to the government of the federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha, and the minister of finance, budget and national planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed.
Below is the timeline of budget presentation and passage in Nigeria since the return to democracy in 1999.
Year 2000 Budget
The budget for year 2000 was laid before the National Assembly on November 24, 1999. It was passed by the Legislature on April 14, 2000, later transmitted to the then president, who signed it into law on May 5, 2000. It took four months and 21 days before passage.
Year 2001 Budget
The 2001 budget proposal was presented to the National Assembly on November 9, 2000, passed on December 21 of the same year and the president signed it into law the same month. It took one month and 12 days before passage.
Year 2002 Budget
The 2002 budget was laid on the floor of the National Assembly on November 7, 2001, while the Legislature passed it on March 28, 2002, as the president signed it the same month. It took four months and 21 days to be passed.
Year 2003 Budget
As for the 2003 budget, it was presented to the National Assembly on November 20, 2002. It was passed by the Legislature on March 11, 2003, and the president signed it into law on April 10, 2003. It was passed in three months and 19 days.
Year 2004 Budget
The 2004 budget was laid before the National Assembly on December 18, 2003, while the lawmakers passed it on April 20, 2004, and the president assented to it on April 21, of the same year. It was passed in four months and two days.
Year 2005 Budget
President Obasanjo presented the 2005 budget to the National Assembly on October 12, 2004. It was passed on March 18, 2005, while the president signed it into law on April 12 of the same year.
Year 2006 Budget
The 2006 budget was laid before the National Assembly on December 6, 2005. It was passed on February 21, 2006, while the president assented to it on April 22, 2006. It took two months and 15 days to be passed.
Year 2007 Budget
The money bill for 2007 was presented to the Legislature on October 6, 2006, and it was passed on December 22 of the same year. The president assented to it in the same month. It took two months and 16 days to be passed.
Year 2008 Budget
The 2008 budget got to the National Assembly on November 8, 2007. It was passed on March 27, 2008, while the president signed it into law on April 14 of the same year. It was passed in four months and 19 days.
Year 2009 Budget
The 2009 budget was presented to the National Assembly on December 2, 2008 and was passed on February 3, 2009. The then president signed it into law on March 10, 2009. That year’s budget was passed in two months and a day.
Year 2010 Budget
The year 2010 budget was laid before the National Assembly on November 23, 2009 and passed March 25, 2010 and assented to by the president on April 22, 2010.
Year 2011 Budget
The 2011 budget was presented on December 15, 2010. The National Assembly passed it on May 25, 2011 while the president signed it into law May 27, 2011.
Year 2012 Budget
The year 2012 budget got to the National Assembly on December 13, 2011. It was passed on March 15, 2012 and assented to on April 13, 2012.
Year 2013 Budget
The 2013 budget was laid on October 10, 2012. It was passed on December 20, 2012. The then president signed it into law on February 26, 2013.
Year 2014 Budget
The 2014 budget was laid before the National Assembly on December 19, 2013. It was then passed on April 11, 2014. The president signed it into law on May 24, 2014.
Year 2015 Budget
The 2015 budget was presented on December 17, 2014. It was passed on April 28, 2015, while the president signed it into law on May 19, 2015.
Year 2016 Budget
The 2016 budget was presented on December 22, 2015. It was passed by the Legislature on March 23, 2016, while the president signed it into law on May 6, 2016.
Year 2017 Budget
The 2017 budget was presented on December 14, 2016. The National Assembly passed it on May 11, 2017 as the then acting president assented to it on June 22, 2017.
Year 2018 Budget
The 2018 budget got to the National Assembly on November 7, 2017. It was passed on May 16, 2018, and the president signed it into law on June 20, 2018.
Year 2019 Budget
The 2019 budget was presented on December 19, 2018. It was passed on April 30, 2019, and the president signed it into law on May 27. It was passed within four months and 11 days. Year 2020 Budget The 2020 budget was presented to the National Assembly on October 8, 2019 and passed on December 5, 2019.
