Economy
Uproar in Senate over CBN Ways, Means advances of N23.7trn to FG
There was some sort of disarray in Senate for several hours over how to restructure the payment of N23. 7 trillion “Ways and Means” advances the federal government secured from the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) in the last 10 years. Following the action, the President of the Senate, Senator Ahmad Lawan forced the Senators to go into a closed door session to avoid further confusion and possible breakdown of law and order. “Ways and Means” are advances by the Central Bank to the Federal Government to enable it cater for short term or emergency finance to fund delayed government expected cash receipt of fiscal deficits.” Trouble started when the Chairman Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Olamilekan Adeola, came up with a report on Ways and Means 2022 as requested by President Muhammadu Buhari last week.
Soon after the presentation by Senator Adeola, Senator Apiafi, raised a point of order, with very strong argument that President Buhari’s request was unconstitutional and what the Senate is about to do by considering the request is unknown in Nigerian law. The Senate became tensed up when the President of the Senate ruled her out of order on the grounds that the report should be presented and read by the committee chairman thereafter lawmakers can contribute to the debate. The President in a letter read by Senate President Ahmad Lawan during Plenary session last Wednesday, explained that Ways and Means are advances from the Central Bank of Nigeria to the federal government for emergency funding of delayed receipt of fiscal deficit. According to him, the ways and means balances as at 19th December 2022 is 22.7 trillion. President Buhari had stated in the letter that he has approved the securitisation of the ways and means balances along the following terms: Amount N23.7 trillion, Tenure 40 years, Moratorium on principal repayment, three years, Pricing interest rate 9%. The Senate had in line with parliamentary procedure, gave the request expeditious consideration by passing it for second reading and mandating its committee on Finance to work on it.
Lawan’s ruling annoyed Senator Apiafi and some other Senators, thereby leading to a tense atmosphere. At this point, Senator George Sekibo, raised a point of order calling on the President of the Senate to step down the consideration of the report until lawmakers have more details on what the funds were used for. In a move to kill the report, Senator Sekibo raised constitutional orders citing sections 80, 83, Section1,13(1) of the 1999 Constitution and section 38 of the CBN Act to kick against the request.
Sekibo said, “we came into this Chamber today and we were given the report of N22.7 trillion which has been spent in the past ten years. Whether it is 10 years or 5years, whatever it is, the issue is that such payment when the loans are taken the Senate should be informed, we should be abreast with the information that such money is going to be taken because it is being taken on behalf of the people of Nigeria and we are entrusted with the power to make laws.
“According to the constitution we can appropriate. They brought this without details for us to approve. Section 80 of the 1999 constitution as amended all revenues or other monies raised or received by the Federation, not being revenue and other monies payable under this constitution or any act of the National Assembly into any other public fund of the federation established for a particular purpose shall be paid into and for and form one consolidated revenue fund of the Federation. No money shall be withdrawn from the consolidated revenue fund of the Federation except to meet expenditure that is charged upon the fund or where the issue of those monies have been authorised by an appropriation act, supplementary act or an act passed in pursuance of section 81 of the constitution. No money shall be withdrawn from any account other than the consolidated revenue fund of the Federation unless the issue of those monies have been authorised by the act of the National Assembly. Section 80 (4) no money shall be withdrawn from the consolidated revenue fund or any other fund of the Federation except by the approval of the National Assembly, except in the manner prescribed by the National Assembly
“Section 83. The National Assembly may make provision for the establishment of Federation fund for.the Federation and for.authorising the President if satisfying that there had arisen an urgent unforeseen expenditure to make advances to meet the needs. Section 38 of the CBN Act states ” any money collected by federal government as loan or emergency fund in form of Ways and Means Advances , must be refunded before collection of another one. Mr President, the relevant laws quoted, clearly shows that the N22.7trillion Ways and Means Advances already spent by federal government without informing the National Assembly was wrong and will be unfair as representatives of Nigerians to approve this request.” The Senate thereafter went into a closed door session for one hour and the request was stepped down at the end of the day for lack of details. Spirited attempt made by the Senate President to make Senators back down, proved abortive as many of them, left their seats shouting, no!, No, which hurriedly made them to go into close session for about one and half hours.
After the closed session, the Senate as separately announced by Senator Adeola and Lawan, resolved to step down restructuring of N22.7trillion Ways and Means. For the others, a special committee was set up to summon the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed; CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele and heads of other relevant agencies for details on expenditure made from the N22.7 trillion. The Committee headed by the Senate Leader, Ibrahim Gobir, APC Sokoto East is to submit its report on 17th January, 2023 when Senate resumes plenary from the New year recess .
The Arab Africa Trade Bridges (AATB) Program and the Federal Republic of Nigeria formalized a partnership with the signing of the AATB Membership Agreement, officially welcoming Nigeria as the Program’s newest member country. The signing ceremony took place in Abuja on the sidelines of the 5th AATB Board of Governors Meeting, hosted by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The Membership Agreement was signed by Eng. Adeeb Y. Al Aama, the CEO of the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) and AATB Program Secretary General, and H.E. Mr. Wale Edun, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Agreement will provide a strategic and operational framework to support Nigeria’s efforts in trade competitiveness, promote export diversification, strengthen priority value chains, and advance capacity-building efforts in line with national development priorities. Areas of collaboration will include trade promotion, agribusiness modernization, SME development, businessmen missions, trade facilitation, logistics efficiency, and digital trade readiness.
The Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, called for deeper trade collaboration between African and Arab nations, stressing the importance of value-added Agribusiness and industrial partnerships for regional growth. Speaking in Abuja at the Agribusiness Matchmaking Forum ahead of the AATB Board of Governors Meeting, the Minister said the shifting global economy makes it essential for African and Arab nations to rely more on regional cooperation, investment and shared markets.
He highlighted projections showing Arab-Africa trade could grow by more than US$37 billion in the next three years and urged partners to prioritize value addition rather than raw commodity exports. He noted that Nigeria’s growing industrial base and upcoming National Single Window reforms will support efficiency, investment and private-sector expansion.
“This is a moment to turn opportunity into action”, he said. “By working together, we can build stronger value chains, create jobs and support prosperity across our regions”, Edun emphasized. “As African and Arab nations embark on this journey of deeper trade collaboration, the potential for growth and development is vast. With a shared vision and commitment to value-added partnerships, we can unlock new opportunities, drive economic growth, and create a brighter future for our people.”
Speaking during the event, Eng. Adeeb Y. Al Aama, Chief Executive Officer of ITFC and Secretary General of the AATB Program, stated: “We are pleased to welcome Nigeria to be part of the AATB Program. Nigeria stands as one of Africa’s most dynamic and resilient economies in Africa, with a rapidly expanding private sector and strong potential across agribusiness, energy, manufacturing, and digital industries. Through this Membership Agreement, we look forward to collaborating closely with Nigerian institutions to strengthen value chains, expand regional market access, enhance trade finance and investment opportunities, and support the country’s development priorities.”
The signing of this Agreement underscores AATB’s continued engagement with African countries and its evolving portfolio of programs supporting trade and investment. In recent years, AATB has worked on initiatives across agribusiness, textiles, logistics, digital trade, export readiness under the AfCFTA framework, and other regional initiatives such as the Common African Agro-Parks (CAAPs) Programme.
With Nigeria’s accession, the AATB Program extends it’s presence in the region and adds a key partner working toward advancing trade-led development and fostering inclusive economic growth.
Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), a key fiscal document that outlines Nigeria’s revenue expectations, macroeconomic assumptions, and spending priorities for the next three years. The approval followed Wednesday’s FEC meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the State House, Abuja. The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu made this known after the meeting.
The Minister said the Federal Government is projecting a total revenue inflow of N34.33 trillion in 2026, including N4.98 trillion expected from government-owned enterprises. Bagudu said that the projected revenue is N6.55 trillion lower than earlier estimates, adding that federal allocations are expected to drop by about N9.4 trillion, representing a 16% decline compared to the 2025 budget.
He said that statutory transfers are expected to amount to about N3 trillion within the same fiscal year. On macroeconomic assumptions, FEC adopted an oil production benchmark of 2.6 million barrels per day (mbpd) for 2026, although a more conservative 1.8 mbpd will be used for budgeting purposes. An oil price benchmark of $64 per barrel and an exchange rate of N1,512 per dollar were also approved.
Bagudu said the exchange rate assumption reflects projections tied to economic and political developments ahead of the 2027 general elections. He said the exchange rate assumption took into account the fiscal outlook ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The minister said that all the parameters were based on macroeconomic analysis by the Budget Office and other relevant agencies. Bagudu said FEC also reviewed comments from cabinet members before approving the Medium-Term Fiscal Expenditure Ceiling (MFTEC), which sets expenditure limits. Earlier, the Senate approved the external borrowing plan of $21.5 billion presented by President Tinubu for consideration The loans, according to the Senate, were part of the MTEF and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) for the 2025 budget.
The spot rate on Nigerian Treasury bills has been increased by 146 basis points by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) following tight subscription levels at the main auction on Wednesday. The spot rate on Treasury bills with one-year maturity has now surpassed Nigeria’s 16.05% inflation by 145 basis points following a recent decision to keep the policy rate at 27%.
The Apex Bank came to the primary market with N700 billion Treasury bills offer size across standard tenors, including 91-day, 182-day and 364 day maturities. Details from the auction results showed that demand settled slightly above the total offers as investors began to seek higher returns on naira assets despite disinflation.
Total subscription came in at about N775 billion versus N700 billion offers floated at the main auction. The results showed rising appetite for duration as investors parked about 90% of their bids on Nigerian Treasury bills with 364 days maturity. The CBN opened N100 billion worth of 91 days bills for subscription, but the offer received underwhelming bids totalling N44.17 billion.
The CBN allotted N42.80 billion for the short-term instrument at the spot rate of 15.30%, the same as the previous auction. Total demand for 182 days Nigerian Treasury bills settled at N33.38 billion as against N150 billion that the authority pushed out for subscription. The CBN raised N30.36 billion from 182 days bills allotted to investors at the spot rate of 15.50%, the same as the previous auction.
Investors staked N697.29 billion on N450 billion in 364-day Treasury bills that was offered for subscription. The CBN raised N636.46 billion from the longest tenor at the spot rate of 17.50%, up from 16.04% at the previous auction.
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