All These Delay in Signing the Budget is Hurting the Economy

The failure of the National Assembly to make the Budget friendly enough for President Muhammadu Buhari to sign the document is creating some uncertainties in the economy.

According to economists and analysts, by the time the National Bureau of Statistics will release the economic growth data for the first quarter of this year, many Nigerians will realise that the delay in signing the budget has caused tremendous harm to the economy.


An economist and Chief Executive Officer, Cowry Asset Management Limited, an investment and research firm, Mr. Johnson Chukwu, said, “The economy grew at 2.11 per cent during the fourth quarter of 2015. When the data for the first quarter of 2016 is out, we will realise that the delay in signing the budget has almost paralysed economic activities.

“Apart from the fact that the government is a major player in the economy, many economic sectors and activities are tied to the implementation of the budget. This is why you see that the failure of the government in signing the budget is having adverse effects on the economy.”

For the Head of Investment Advisory and Research, Afrinvest in Lagos, Ayodeji Ebo, hundreds of companies have refused to sign new deals due to the Federal Government’s delay in signing the budget.

This had increased the slow growth we are experiencing and led to higher level of unemployment.

He added, “The prolonged non-implementation of the budget will continue to affect the economy adversely. Besides, the available liquidity in the economy cannot be increased for the growth of the economy until the budget is signed. The earlier the government does this, the better for us.”

The national assembly went and add some sub-heads in the budget without any study and remove some very critical projects that would affect all Nigerians directly. This is the problem at the moment.