2027 Budget: Federal Government Gives MDAs September 18 Deadline to Submit Personnel Proposals

The Federal Government has set Friday, September 18, 2026, as the deadline for Ministries, Departments and Agencies to submit their personnel cost proposals for the 2027 budget.

This is contained in the 2027 Personnel Costs Budget Call Circular dated September 4, 2026 and signed by the Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Tanimu Yakubu. The document was published on the Budget Office website and obtained by reporters on Sunday.

According to the circular, the Federal Government plans to present the 2027 budget proposal to the National Assembly in September 2026. This is part of efforts to move the budget cycle forward and avoid the delays and overlapping fiscal years that have affected implementation in recent years.

The Budget Office said the draft 2027 to 2029 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper was concluded in July 2026 in line with the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007. The early completion is expected to help with early submission of the budget to the National Assembly.

While a specific date for presentation was not given, the timetable shows the government wants the budget in the National Assembly about three months before the start of the 2027 fiscal year.

Nigeria’s budget process has faced challenges with implementation and overlapping cycles since 2024. The government had earlier blamed part of the problem on different macroeconomic projections by agencies handling fiscal and monetary policy. To address this, the Economic Management Team set up a committee to harmonize assumptions on crude oil price, production, exchange rate, inflation and non-oil revenue.

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said harmonizing these projections should help reduce gaps between budget targets and actual results.

As part of new controls, the Budget Office said all MDAs must submit both hard and soft copies of their 2027 personnel budget proposals by 4pm on September 18, 2026.

In a new requirement, MDAs must also submit the laws that established them with their budget proposals. The Budget Office said this is to prevent the inclusion of unestablished agencies in the federal budget. It warned that failure to submit the establishment acts may lead to rejection of the proposal.

This directive comes after a scandal in the 2026 budget involving the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council. The agency was allocated about 1.3 billion naira despite questions about its legal status. The House of Representatives is investigating the matter and the President has ordered a forensic review of budget processes.

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission said its investigation showed the PFIPC had no legal backing and its supposed Director-General, Adeniyi Adeyemi, was never appointed by government. The commission also uncovered another entity called the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office operating within the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation. ICPC said the office had no approval and named George Buchi Nwabueze as the promoter. The President has ordered the arrest of Nwabueze and the suspension of three permanent secretaries.

Amnesty International Nigeria said the incident shows weaknesses in government institutions and called for an independent inquiry.

The circular also introduced stricter rules on personnel spending. MDAs were warned not to include salaries or allowances for people who are not legitimate federal employees. Any unauthorized payment will attract sanctions.

MDAs must validate their payrolls with records from the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System and the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System. No personnel cost will be provided for any staff not on IPPIS or GIFMIS unless exempted by the appropriate authority.

Salary structures and allowances must follow approvals from the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission. MDAs were also told not to budget for promotions that have not been approved. Promotions that take effect in 2027 will be handled centrally under a Service Wide Vote.

For new recruitment, MDAs must provide financial clearance, appointment letters and other relevant approvals. The Budget Office said it will not entertain claims for salary shortfalls from unauthorized recruitment.

Contract staff, consultants, youth corps members and outsourced workers must not be included in nominal rolls. Their payments should come from overhead votes. For the health and education sectors, the circular banned the multiple listing of consultants across institutions and set quotas for interns and honorary consultants.

To improve monitoring, the Budget Office said it will launch a Personnel Cost Monitoring Dashboard linked to IPPIS and GIFMIS. A standing committee will handle salary and promotion arrears quarterly, while a Payroll Discrepancy Resolution Committee will meet monthly.

MDAs are also required to submit third quarter personnel budget performance reports by September 30, 2026. Chief executives and accounting officers must initial every page of the hard copies of their proposals and certify the information.

The government said these steps are aimed at strengthening budget preparation, improving transparency and ensuring that only legally established agencies receive funding.