The Senate on Thursday approved an extension of the implementation period for the capital component of the 2025 Appropriation Act from June 30, 2026, to September 30, 2026, in a move aimed at ensuring the completion of ongoing federal projects and the full utilisation of funds already released for their execution.

The resolution followed the adoption of a motion sponsored by the Senate Chief Whip, Mohammed Tahir Monguno, who argued that many strategic projects captured in the budget were at advanced stages of completion but required additional time for execution, certification, and payment.

Presenting the motion, Monguno said the 2025 Appropriation Act was enacted to provide funding for government programmes, projects, and activities designed to stimulate economic growth, enhance infrastructure, strengthen national security, and improve the welfare of Nigerians.

He noted that despite substantial releases made by the Federal Government to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), a significant portion of the funds remained unutilised due to procurement timelines, project implementation challenges, and other administrative bottlenecks.

According to him, several critical capital projects across key sectors of the economy are nearing completion and would suffer setbacks if the implementation period expires as scheduled.

“The Senate is aware that a number of strategic capital projects across critical sectors of the economy are at advanced stages of completion and require additional time for execution, certification, and payment,” he said.

He warned that failure to extend the implementation period could result in the abandonment of important projects, wastage of public resources already committed to them, and disruption of ongoing government interventions.

The lawmaker further expressed concern that many projects and programmes captured in the 2025 budget might not be accommodated in subsequent appropriation cycles, thereby creating funding gaps and undermining national development objectives.

“The Senate recognises that extending the validity period of the capital component of the 2025 Appropriation Act will facilitate the efficient utilisation of released funds, improve budget performance, enhance service delivery, and support economic growth,” he stated.

He added that the extension was in the national interest and would ensure value for money in public expenditure.

Following consideration of the motion, the Senate resolved to support an amendment to the 2025 Appropriation Act extending the implementation period of its capital component by three months, from June 30 to September 30, 2026.

In his remarks, Senate President Godswill Akpabio said the decision was consistent with the constitutional responsibilities of the National Assembly and was intended to guarantee proper budget implementation.

“Let me particularly thank the Senate Chief Whip for moving this important motion,” Akpabio said.

“In accordance with the law and the constitutional powers vested in the National Assembly, what we have done this afternoon is to ensure the proper implementation of the budget.”

He clarified that the extension applied only to the capital component of the 2025 Appropriation Act as amended and not to recurrent expenditure.

Akpabio recalled that when President Bola Ahmed Tinubu presented the budget to the National Assembly, it was envisaged that a substantial portion of the capital expenditure would be implemented within the approved timeframe, while the balance would be accommodated within subsequent budgetary provisions.

However, he noted that implementation delays had made it necessary for the National Assembly to previously extend the budget’s implementation period to June 30, 2026, to enable the completion of ongoing projects and the utilisation of released funds.

The Senate President said that although payments had commenced on many projects, numerous obligations remained outstanding.

“Therefore, it has become necessary, in the interest of effective budget execution and accountability, to further extend the implementation period beyond June 30, 2026, to September 30, 2026,” he said.

He expressed optimism that the additional three-month window would allow all outstanding commitments under the affected component of the budget to be fully settled while enabling the implementation of projects and programmes contained in subsequent budgets to proceed without disruption.

The extension is expected to provide MDAs with additional time to conclude procurement processes, complete ongoing projects, and improve overall capital budget performance before the commencement of the next budget cycle.