The United States Government has raised serious concerns over Nigeria’s fiscal transparency, accusing the country of falling short in providing the public with a complete picture of government revenues, expenditures and the management of public resources.
The concerns were contained in the 2026 Fiscal Transparency Report released by the United States Department of State on Tuesday.
The report assessed Nigeria’s fiscal transparency practices and identified significant weaknesses in budget disclosure, expenditure reporting, public procurement transparency and the independence and effectiveness of the country’s supreme audit institution.
According to the US government, Nigeria has made some fiscal information available to the public, but major gaps remain in the disclosure of critical financial information.
The report noted that while Nigeria’s enacted budget and end-of-year report were widely accessible, including online, the government failed to publish its executive budget proposal within a reasonable period.
The United States said the failure limits the ability of citizens and other stakeholders to properly scrutinise government spending plans before they are implemented.
The report further raised concerns about the completeness of Nigeria’s budget documents, particularly the extent to which they provide information on government revenue and expenditure.
It acknowledged that information about Nigeria’s debt obligations, including debts associated with major state-owned enterprises, was publicly available.
However, it said the country’s budget documents did not provide a substantially complete picture of government revenues and expenditures.
The US government also faulted the level of detail provided on government spending, noting that expenditures supporting executive offices were not adequately broken down in the budget.
One of the most significant concerns raised in the report was the apparent disconnect between Nigeria’s approved budget and its actual financial performance.
According to the United States, the revenues generated and expenditures recorded during budget implementation did not reasonably correspond with what was contained in the enacted budget.
“Actual revenues and expenditures did not reasonably correspond to those in the enacted budget,” the report stated.
The finding raises fresh questions about the accuracy of government projections and the level of transparency surrounding budget implementation.
The United States also criticised Nigeria’s supreme audit institution, stating that it did not meet international standards of independence and had failed to publish substantive reports despite having access to the entire executed budget.
“The supreme audit institution did not meet international standards of independence or publish substantive reports but did have access to the entire executed budget,” the report said.
Public procurement transparency was another major area of concern.
The US government said Nigeria did not publish accessible information on public procurement contracts, limiting public access to details about government contracts and potentially weakening transparency in the use of public funds.
“The government did not publish accessible information on public procurement contracts,” the report stated.
Despite the criticisms, the United States recognised some areas of progress in Nigeria’s fiscal governance.
The report said Nigeria’s sovereign wealth fund had a sound legal framework and disclosed information about its source of funding and its general approach to withdrawals.
It also acknowledged that the Nigerian government had established legal criteria and procedures for awarding natural-resource extraction contracts and licences and generally followed existing regulations in practice.
However, the US government said more reforms were necessary to bring Nigeria’s fiscal transparency practices in line with international expectations.
It recommended that the Federal Government make its executive budget proposal widely and easily accessible to the public, including online.
The United States also called on Nigeria to provide a substantially complete picture of government revenues and expenditures in its budget documents.
It further urged the government to break down expenditures supporting executive offices to provide greater clarity on how public funds are allocated.
On budget implementation, the US government recommended that Nigeria ensure actual revenues and expenditures reasonably correspond with figures contained in the enacted budget.
It also called for reforms to strengthen the independence of Nigeria’s supreme audit institution and ensure that it publishes substantive audit reports covering the government’s executed budget.
On public procurement, the US government urged Nigeria to publish accessible information on government contracts, allowing citizens and other stakeholders to better scrutinise the award and implementation of public projects.
The assessment comes amid continuing public debate over Nigeria’s revenue generation, borrowing, government expenditure and the implementation of annual budgets.
The latest US findings therefore place renewed international attention on the transparency of Nigeria’s public finances and the systems in place to ensure that government revenue is properly accounted for and public expenditure is subjected to effective oversight.
For millions of Nigerians who depend on public resources and government services, the report underscores the importance of greater openness in budgeting, stronger independent auditing and improved access to information on government contracts.
The United States’ recommendations ultimately place the responsibility on the Nigerian government to close the identified gaps and provide citizens with clearer and more accessible information on how public resources are generated, allocated and spent.