Gov. Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo State, on Monday, presented a sum of N492 billion as 2026 budget to the state House of Assembly.

Mr Aiyedatiwa explained that the sum of N210 billion was for recurrent expenditure, while N281 billion was earmarked for capital expenditure.

The budget is christened “Budget of Economic Consolidation.”

The 2026 budget proposal is higher than the 2025 revised budget, which stands at over N489 billion.

The leader of the House, Olatunji Oshati, moved a motion for the governor to present the budget proposal and it was seconded by Olatunji Fabiyi, Odigbo 1-APC.

Speaking further, the governor stated that the 2025 budget was revised to meet the needs of the citizens, since the initial budget could not meet its targets because expected grants were not forthcoming.

He said that the government, through a very prudent management despite lean resources, achieved remarkable progress in the last one year in all sectors.

The governor noted that infrastructural development has the highest percentage of 26.80 in the 2026 budget proposal followed by public finance with 18.2 per cent.

Mr Aiyedatiwa added that trade and industry, information, environment and sewage management have the lowest percentage of 1:00 in the proposal.

He noted that the proposal was justified as the natural progression from previous years’ activities and, therefore, would reflect a deliberate shift from mere restoration to sustained consolidation of economic gains.

The governor said that the proposal would ensure that the progress recorded in 2025 could mature into long-term prosperity, resilience and inclusive development.

According to him, global economic slowdown poses risks to the state’s revenue, which relies heavily on Federation Account Allocations, Personal Income Tax, VAT and other shared revenues.

He added that the government’s policy thrusts and priorities for the 2026 fiscal year are designed to focus on deepening reforms and accelerating development.

Mr Aiyedatiwa promised that the proposal would cater for sustained food security and agricultural transformation with human capital development and skills enhancement.

He added that the proposal would also focus on infrastructure expansion and modernisation, saying that it would drive the internally generated revenue (IGR).

He asked members of the Assembly to give careful consideration to the proposal and be committed to its timely and effective implementation.

“We anticipate that 2026 will bring significant progress, prosperity and well-being to our citizens,” he said.

In his remarks, Olamide Oladiji, the Speaker of the Assembly, appreciated the governor for the timely presentation of the proposal.

Mr Oladiji said that the timeliness would help the lawmakers to give careful consideration to it.

He added that the governor has shown exemplary leadership in the state, commending him for reviewing the salary of workers of the legislative body.

According to him, the governor’s timely intervention to salvage the disagreement among the 26 lawmakers cannot be overemphasised.

The speaker promised that the budget proposal would be thoroughly screened to meet the needs of residents of the state.

(NAN)