Capital spending by Federal Government ministries, departments, and agencies has remained severely constrained over the last three fiscal years, even as retained revenues expanded and debt service absorbed an overwhelming share of available resources, according to findings by The PUNCH.An analysis of data from the Budget Office of the Federation’s Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper reports covering 2023, 2024, and the January–July period of 2025 showed that MDAs’ capital expenditure votes were persistently underfunded, leaving a cumulative gap of N15.21tn over the three-year period.
Despite successive increases in headline capital budgets, actual releases and spending failed to keep pace, reflecting deep structural pressure on public finances, largely driven by rising debt service obligations.Over the three years, capital expenditure under the category “Capital Expenditure (MDAs + Others)” totalled N27.33tn when measured on a comparable basis that includes the 2025 pro rata. Actual capital expenditure traceable to those votes amounted to N12.13tn, leaving a shortfall of N15.21tn.In percentage terms, MDAs accessed just 44.37 per cent of the capital funding provided for them over the period, meaning that more than half of the planned capital projects were left unfunded or only partially funded.The underperformance was evident in each individual year. In 2023, the Federal Government budgeted N5.31tn for capital expenditure under MDAs and others. Actual capital expenditure stood at N3.25tn by year-end, implying a shortfall of N2.06tn and a performance ratio of about 61.15 per cent.Although this represented the strongest year within the three-year window in relative terms, it still meant that nearly two-fifths of planned capital spending was not delivered