By Samuel Thomas
The Taraba State Government spent only 12.5 per cent of its ₦460.39 billion capital expenditure budget in the first half of 2026, according to the state's 2026 Second Quarter Budget Implementation Report.
The report showed that the state had spent ₦57.49 billion on capital expenditure as of the end of June, leaving about ₦402.90 billion of the approved capital budget unspent.
The figure represents a significant gap in the implementation of projects and programmes captured under the state's 2026 budget.
Overall, the state recorded 25 per cent expenditure performance against its total annual budget during the period under review, with total expenditure standing at about ₦163.58 billion.
The low capital spending came despite the state recording ₦217.22 billion in revenue during the first two quarters of the year, representing 33.3 per cent of its ₦651.49 billion annual revenue target.
The report showed that the state received ₦112.01 billion as its share of the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) revenue during the period, representing 29.8 per cent of the ₦376.16 billion projected for the year.
Capital Spending Lags
The report's capital expenditure figures raise questions about the pace of implementation of development projects across sectors.
While some sectors recorded significant spending, several critical areas had relatively low or zero implementation during the period.
The state allocated substantial resources to sectors such as health, education, agriculture, infrastructure and environmental protection, but the overall capital expenditure performance remained at just 12.5 per cent halfway through the financial year.
The report indicates that the low capital expenditure was not necessarily due to a complete absence of government spending, as recurrent expenditure accounted for a larger share of spending during the period.
Recurrent expenditure stood at about ₦106.09 billion, representing 55.6 per cent of the ₦190.92 billion recurrent budget.
Health Projects Affected
The health sector was among the areas where capital implementation remained low.
The report showed that ₦3.53 billion was budgeted for the construction and provision of hospitals and health centres, but no expenditure had been recorded against the allocation by the end of the second quarter.
Similarly, ₦900 million allocated for the rehabilitation and repairs of hospitals and health centres recorded zero expenditure during the period.
Primary healthcare also recorded relatively low implementation, with ₦1.24 billion spent out of an allocation of about ₦8.77 billion, representing 14.1 per cent performance.
Education Also Records Low Implementation
The education sector also recorded low capital spending in the first six months of the year.
The state had allocated about ₦77 billion to education under the functional classification, but only ₦5.998 billion had been spent by the end of June, representing 7.8 per cent implementation.
The report showed particularly low spending in some subsectors, raising questions about the pace of implementation of planned education projects.
Agriculture Spending Remains Low
Agriculture, another key sector in the state's development plans, also recorded low implementation.
The state budgeted about ₦34.7 billion for agriculture, but only ₦3.56 billion had been spent by the end of the second quarter, representing 10.2 per cent implementation.
Some components recorded even lower performance. Food production and productivity recorded only 2.7 per cent implementation, while post-harvest loss reduction and fisheries development recorded no expenditure during the period.
Climate Change Allocation Barely Touched
The report also showed very low implementation of the state's climate change budget.
Out of about ₦7.83 billion allocated to climate change-related activities, only ₦500,000 had been spent by the end of the second quarter.
This represents virtually zero implementation of the annual allocation during the first six months of the year.
The development is significant given the state's exposure to environmental challenges, including flooding, erosion, deforestation and other climate-related risks.
What Happens to the Remaining Budget?
With six months of the financial year already gone, the report leaves the state with about ₦402.9 billion of its capital expenditure budget still to be implemented.
The remaining months of the year will therefore be critical for the government to accelerate the implementation of capital projects and programmes if it is to significantly improve its overall budget performance.
The report, however, does not by itself explain the reasons for the low capital expenditure or whether the delayed implementation is linked to procurement processes, project readiness, funding schedules or other administrative factors.
The figures therefore highlight the need for further clarification from the state government on the status of the affected projects and its plans to accelerate implementation in the second half of the year.
As the state moves into the second half of the 2026 financial year, the central question remains whether the government can translate the substantial resources provided for capital development into actual projects and services before the end of the year.
No comments:
Post a Comment