The Federal Government has set aside approximately N962.83 billion in the 2026 Appropriation Act for the purchase of Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs) and various empowerment initiatives.
This substantial allocation has drawn scrutiny, as it surpasses the combined budgets of several key federal ministries.According to an analysis by civic technology organisation Tracka, the breakdown includes N15.13 billion for procuring 39 SUVs and N947.70 billion for 2,579 empowerment projects.
This total exceeds the combined N960.27 billion allocated to seven ministries: Industry, Trade and Investment (N156.8bn), Housing and Urban Development (N145.3bn), Women Affairs (N169.39bn), Justice (N150.7bn), Livestock Development (N177.6bn), Aviation and Aerospace Development (N87.3bn), and Petroleum Resources (N73.1bn).
Tracka raised serious concerns about transparency, noting that only 70 of the 2,579 empowerment projects have clearly identified implementation locations.
The projects are spread across 184 implementing agencies, many of which lack a statutory mandate for such programmes.
Examples include the Federal Cooperative College, Oji River (393 projects worth N127.1bn),
