Daily Trust Editorial, Wednesday April 29, 2026
Records from the federal government’s Open Treasury Portal show that, despite the escalating security crisis across the country, the Nigerian Army and the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) are grappling with gross underfunding, particularly in the acquisition of security and defence equipment. Details of the 2025 budget performance posted on the portal showed that, of the N20.56bn budgeted by the Nigerian Army for the purchase of security equipment, only N1.46bn, representing 7.11 per cent, was disbursed as of December 31, 2025.
Of the N4.52trn total expenditure the army proposed for 2025, N1.17trn, or 25.94 per cent, was disbursed as of the end of the year. For the Air Force, N238.32bn of its N1.25trn total expenditure was released, representing 19.04 per cent.
For NAF, the records further revealed that N4.85bn, or 13.98 per cent of the N34.71bn budgeted for the maintenance of aircraft, which are central to its operations, was released as of December 2025. This is in sharp contrast with N20.27bn disbursed for the running of the Presidential Air Fleet (PAF), out of the N20.74bn budgeted, marking 97.76 per cent implementation.
Of the N15.75bn budgeted for the purchase of NAF’s security equipment, N5.25bn was released during the period, representing 33.33 per cent. The purchase of defence equipment suffered a major setback, with N19.25bn, or 6.45 per cent, released out of N298.44bn budgeted.
Other necessary areas did not fare any better. For example, the N117.90bn budget for the rehabilitation/repair of defence equipment was implemented at 3.99 per cent (N4.71bn). Zero amount was released for the construction/provision of defence equipment, while budgeted welfare packages, construction and repairs of military barracks, and other transport equipment fuel costs received paltry releases.
In the same vein, the capital-to-personnel/overhead expenditure ratio is dismal for a nation at war. According to the Budget Office of the Federation, the grand totals for the 2026 budget for the Ministry of Defence, encompassing the Services and tri-service institutions, include: personnel — N2,392,883,869,930; overhead — N297,034,773,462; capital — N464,474,756,899; and a total allocation of N3,154,393,400,291. Curiously, personnel/overhead accounts for over 75 per cent, while capital is just under 25 per cent, meaning that the bulk is to be spent on soldiers with little provision for equipping them. Yet, we have a military overstretched in all states of the federation.
These figures undeservedly point to an underfunded and underequipped military. Therefore, Daily Trust demands a robust plan to upgrade the military’s equipment holdings while taking care of the welfare of troops. This is because government priorities are reflected in its preferred areas of funding. Currently, the budgetary releases and focus do not show that the federal government is seriously funding the war against terror. It needs to do better.
In November 2025, former Chief of Army Staff (COAS) and ex-Minister of Interior, Lt Gen Abdulrahman Dambazau (rtd), said that, generally, only about 40 per cent of budgeted funds for recurrent and capital projects are typically released by the federal government, meaning that when funds are allocated, the actual cash released often falls short, contributing to operational challenges.
Therefore, it is time for the government to sit up, as any funding gap undermines the efficiency of the Nigerian military in fighting terrorism, banditry, and other violent crimes, especially in the northern region. We cannot continue to pretend that the casualty figures are not mounting. A Beacon Security Intelligence Limited (BSIL) report indicated that over 10,000 people were killed in Nigeria during the January–December 2025 budget cycle. It said a total of over 2,350 Nigerians had been killed and 1,117 abducted in the first quarter of 2026.
Moreover, the frontlines have also become deadly for troops, including Brigade Commanders and Commanding Officers (COs), who have been killed as operations intensify in high-risk locations, including the Sambisa Forest, the Timbuktu Triangle, the Mandara Mountains, and the Lake Chad Basin.
Specifically, Daily Trust urges President Bola Tinubu and National Assembly leaders to face the reality that Nigeria is at war and reorder national priorities towards defeating the nation’s most pressing challenge of insecurity. Towards this, all available national resources should be mobilised to tackle this escalating crisis, with adequate and demonstrable political will and leadership.
There should be immediate alignment and mobilisation of funds for urgent military procurement. This should be followed by the sanitisation of the procurement process to enhance operational and financial accountability, free from politicised interference. Additionally, National Assembly oversight functions, especially in budgeting and procurement processes, should not be transactional but professional.
We insist that, since we have sent our noble men and women to the frontlines, we must equip them, at a minimum, with protective vests, functional armoured fighting/personnel vehicles, the required unmanned aerial vehicles, adequate arms and ammunition, and secure communication technology equipment. The urgency of this necessity should not be lost, as insecurity is not only threatening lives and property but also putting question marks on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country.
The re-equipping and full funding of the military must be intentional through the prompt release of budgeted funds. This will erase the era of single- or low double-digit releases of budgeted funds for military procurement and the welfare of soldiers.
