Federal Ministry of Finance has dismissed claims that a significant portion of Nigeria’s federation revenue is being diverted or concealed, describing such reports as a misinterpretation of the latest Nigeria Development Update released by the World Bank.

The World Bank recently said fuel prices in Nigeria have risen by more than 50 percent since the outbreak of the Iran conflict, a situation it said has intensified inflationary pressures and raising concerns over household welfare.

Speaking at the Nigeria Development Update (NDU) presentation in Abuja, Fiseha Haile, World Bank’s Lead Economist for Nigeria,  noted that the sharp increase in fuel prices has significantly increased transportation, food, and production costs across the economy.

Elsewhere, International Monetary Fund (IMF) advised Nigeria to focus on debt sustainability over the choice between external and domestic borrowing, as the country grapples with mounting fiscal pressures and global economic uncertainty.

In a statement on Sunday, Taiwo Oyedele, minister of State for Finance, , said media reports suggesting “hidden spending” and diversion of funds do not reflect the actual findings of the World Bank.

He explained that deductions by the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) have been wrongly portrayed as waste or missing funds, stressing that such deductions are legitimate and form part of established fiscal processes.

“FAAC deductions, as presented in the World Bank report, include:

“Statutory transfers,

Savings and investments,

Security-related expenditures,

Cost-of-collection charges,

Refunds to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs),

Transfers and interventions benefiting subnational governments.

“It is important to emphasise that refunds and transfers to states and other tiers of government are not leakages. They represent legitimate fiscal flows, including repayments of obligations and statutorily backed allocations.” he said.

The ministry also faulted what it described as the selective use of outdated data in some commentaries, noting that recent reforms highlighted in the World Bank report were ignored.

“The World Bank explicitly notes that reforms implemented in early 2026, including the recently signed Executive Order to safeguard remittance of petroleum revenues, are already addressing concerns around deductions, and are expected to improve transparency while increasing revenues available to all tiers of government by about 0.4% of GDP annually.

“Misinterpreting one aspect of the analysis without acknowledging the progressive reforms and measures already introduced to enhance distributable federation revenues gives a distorted picture.”

The statement further said the broader message of the World Bank report presents a positive outlook for Nigeria’s economy, citing more broad-based economic growth, declining inflation, improved external reserves, and a current account surplus.

It also noted an improvement in debt indicators, including a reduction in the debt-to-GDP ratio, which, the Ministry claimed, was the first recorded in over a decade.

The ministry stressed that the World Bank did not conclude that Nigeria’s fiscal system is failing, but rather indicated that ongoing reforms are yielding results and should be sustained.

The statement added, “The Federal Government remains committed to strengthening fiscal transparency, improving revenue mobilisation, ensuring efficient public spending, and deepening reforms to support inclusive economic growth.

“An accurate understanding and responsible reporting of fiscal information are critical to maintaining confidence in Nigeria’s reform trajectory and economic outlook.”

The ministry urged media organisations and stakeholders to ensure accurate reporting of fiscal issues, warning that misrepresentation could undermine public confidence and ongoing reform efforts.

Federal government has recorded a N100 billion borrowing from unclaimed dividends and dormant bank accounts, as new data from the Debt Management Office (DMO) showed that funds warehoused under the Unclaimed Funds Trust Fund have been converted into government securities.

The latest figures from the Debt Management Office’s domestic debt stock report showed that “UFTF FGN Security” stood at N100bn as of December 31, 2025, representing about 0.12 per cent of the Bola Tinubu-led government’s total domestic debt.

The UFTF refers to the Unclaimed Funds Trust Fund, a pool created under the Finance Act 2020 to warehouse idle financial assets. According to the National Debt Management Framework 2023–2027, unclaimed dividends of quoted companies and balances in dormant bank accounts that have remained inactive for at least six years are transferred into the fund.

The document further explained that the Debt Management Office manages the fund in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and that any investment of the fund in Federal Government securities is recognised as part of public debt.

This means that the N100bn recorded under “UFTF FGN Security” reflects funds sourced from unclaimed private assets but deployed by the Bola Tinubu-led government as part of its borrowing programme.

The Finance Act 2020 had earlier provided the legal basis for the arrangement, explicitly allowing the government to utilise the funds. It stated that such unclaimed dividends transferred to the Unclaimed Funds Trust Fund shall be a special debt owed by the Federal Government to the shareholders and shall be available for claim by the shareholder at any time, pursuant to the perpetual trust.

The development comes amid a steady rise in Nigeria’s debt profile, driven largely by persistent fiscal deficits and increasing reliance on domestic borrowing.

Data from the same DMO report showed that total Federal Government domestic debt stood at about N80.49tn as of December 2025, with FGN bonds accounting for the bulk at over 79 per cent, followed by Treasury bills at about 17 per cent.

Despite its small size, the use of unclaimed funds has continued to attract criticism from stakeholders, particularly since the policy was introduced.

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) earlier asked the government to drop its plan of borrowing about N895bn from unclaimed dividends and funds in dormant accounts.

In July 2024, The Punch reported that the Central Bank of Nigeria directed all banks and other financial institutions to transfer all dormant accounts, unclaimed balances, and other financial assets to its dedicated account.

The apex bank made this known in a circular released on Friday and signed by John Onojah,  acting director of the Financial Policy and Banking Regulation Department,.

According to the CBN, all dormant accounts and unclaimed balances with banks for at least 10 years will be warehoused in a dedicated account known as the Unclaimed Balances Trust Fund Pool Account.

The CBN added that the funds from dormant accounts and unclaimed balances may be invested in Nigerian Treasury Bills and other government securities.

The CBN, however, said the new guidelines, which are a review of the guidelines issued in October 2015, exempted dormant accounts and unclaimed balances under litigation and investigation.

The guideline reads: “CBN shall treat unclaimed balances (dormant accounts and financial assets) as follows: Open and maintain the ‘UBTF Pool Account’, maintain records of the beneficiaries of the unclaimed balances warehoused in the UBTF Pool Account.

“Invest the funds in Nigerian treasury bills (NTBs) and other securities as may be approved by the ‘Unclaimed Balances Management Committee.

“Refund the principal and interest (if any) on the invested funds to the beneficiaries not later than 10 working days from the date of receipt of the request, and where it is imperative to extend the timeline, a notice of extension shall be communicated to the requesting FI stating reasons for the extension.”

The CBN also directed all banks and financial institutions to publicly disclose details of dormant accounts, unclaimed balances, and other financial assets on their official websites.

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) have initiated coordinated measures to strengthen cybersecurity following recent concerns affecting aspects of CAC’s digital systems.

Both agencies said they have activated response and assurance mechanisms in line with national cybersecurity frameworks to safeguard critical infrastructure and maintain service integrity.

NITDA reiterated that all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) must adopt proactive cybersecurity measures in compliance with the National Cybersecurity Policy and Strategy (NCPS) 2021.

The agency directed all MDAs to immediately review and reinforce their cybersecurity architecture to address emerging threats targeting government systems and sensitive data.

As part of the directive, MDAs are required to conduct comprehensive security assessments, remediate identified vulnerabilities, and strengthen access controls across critical platforms.

They are also expected to enhance data protection mechanisms, maintain effective backup and disaster recovery systems, and improve monitoring capabilities to detect and respond to suspicious activities.

In addition, there is the need for functional incident response frameworks, including prompt reporting of cybersecurity breaches for coordinated intervention.

Detailed cybersecurity guidelines have already been issued to MDAs for implementation as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen resilience across public sector digital infrastructure.

The measures are aimed at improving the overall security posture of government institutions and ensuring the continued protection of national digital assets.

NITDA reaffirmed its commitment to supporting government agencies in safeguarding digital systems and advancing cybersecurity best practices across the public sector.