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Nigerian government Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) have earmarked billions of naira in computer purchases in the upcoming year, as captured in the 2025 national budget proposals. A review of the Appropriation Bill revealed that 20 MDAs will acquire computers at a total cost of about N14 billion.
President Bola Tinubu presented the N49.7 trillion Appropriation Bill for 2025 to a combined session of the National Assembly on December 18.
The MDA’s budget proposals include the “Purchase of Computers”, as mentioned 212 times, with more than 100 MDAs intending to acquire computers.
Civil society groups have expressed concerns regarding the routine nature of obtaining computers and other “non-essentials” for the MDAs, labelling it as unnecessary and outrageous. They have also urged the National Assembly to carefully examine the Appropriation Bill before it is approved.
Within the new fiscal proposals, the Ministry of Education received N3,880,000,000 specifically for computer purchases; this is followed by the National Cybercrime Coordination Centre, with N2,735,000,000 allocated for the same purpose.
The dissolved Ministry of Sports Development has also been allocated N1.1 billion for computer acquisitions, while the newly formed Ministry of Livestock Development budgeted over N260 million for similar purchases.
Additionally, the Appropriation Bill revealed that N525,183,402 is set aside for computer purchases in the Ministry of Arts, Culture, and Creative Economy; the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development will receive N75 million, and the Ministry of Transport is allocated N70 million.
About N202 million has been earmarked for comparable purchases by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC); the Pension Transitional Arrangement Department (PTAD) has N220 million allocated; the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) will receive N836 million; the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) is set to get N535 million, and the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation has been allocated N797,483,350.
Recently, the lawmaker representing Kaduna state in the House of Representatives, Mohammed Bello El-Rufai, has called on the government to stop appropriating funds for items such as spoons, forks, vehicles, and computers every year as they do not expire.
