President Bola Tinubu has established a multi-ministerial committee to address the mounting backlog of unpaid federal contractors, estimated at over ₦1.5tn and involving roughly 2,000 firms. The decision followed the President’s strong dissatisfaction with revelations presented during Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council meeting at the State House, Abuja.
Briefing journalists after the meeting, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said Tinubu was “gravely displeased” upon learning the scale of the legacy debts.
“He made it very clear he is not happy and wants a one-stop solution,” Onanuga stated. “The DG of the Bureau of Public Procurement told the President that about 2,000 contractors are being owed, and this made him very upset.”
In response, Tinubu directed the creation of a high-level committee to identify the causes of the backlog, design a repayment framework, and source funds for settlement. The panel comprises key economic and infrastructure officials, including:
- Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun
- Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu
- Minister of Works, Dave Umahi
- Minister of Education, Olatunji Alausa
- Minister of Housing, Ahmed Dangiwa
- Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola
- Director-General, Budget Office of the Federation, Tanimu Kurfi
- Executive Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Dr Zacch Adedeji
“All of them are expected to meet, develop a plan, and return to the President with a workable solution for allocating funds to pay contractors,” Onanuga added.
He further explained that Tinubu instructed the committee to review revenue inflows and expenditure bottlenecks, noting that rising tax collections should not coexist with growing contractor arrears.
“The mandate is to find the money and fix the problem,” he said. “The President even noted that, as a sovereign nation, borrowing to settle verified obligations is an option.”
The directive follows sustained agitation from contractors nationwide. In early September, the All Indigenous Contractors Association of Nigeria staged protests at the Ministry of Finance and the National Assembly, alleging more than ₦4tn in outstanding payments for certified 2024 capital projects.
The Ministry of Works had previously acknowledged significant arrears, launching a verification exercise in January 2024 to authenticate and reconcile debts estimated at about ₦1.5tn for federal highway contracts.
The situation has been compounded by overlapping fiscal cycles. Nigeria has extended 2024 capital budget components into 2025, while lawmakers recently approved an additional ₦1.15tn in domestic borrowing to close a widened 2025 deficit. The government also raised $2.35bn through Eurobonds to strengthen financing capacity.
The newly constituted committee is expected to brief the President with its initial recommendations in the coming days
