Governor Hyacinth Alia presented the 2026 budget estimate to the Benue State House of Assembly on Monday, proposing a total outlay of ₦605.5 billion for the fiscal year.

The proposed 2026 budget represented a 10 per cent increase over the 2025 budget.

Presenting the estimate, the governor said that the theme reflected the administration’s development philosophy, with a strong focus on transforming rural communities as a pathway to inclusive growth and economic stability.

He noted that Benue’s rural areas, which formed the backbone of food production and cultural heritage, have suffered years of underinvestment, stressing that the 2026 budget was designed to reverse that trend.

A breakdown of the proposal showed that ₦281.09 billion had been earmarked for recurrent expenditure, accounting for 46.4 per cent of the total budget size.

The recurrent component represented a 21.69 per cent increase over the revised 2025 recurrent expenditure and was expected to cover the payment of the minimum wage, salaries, and other overhead and incidental costs of governance.

On capital expenditure, the governor proposed ₦342.42 billion to fund development projects aimed at sustaining economic gains and stimulating growth in the rural economy.

The capital allocation reflected a 1.66 per cent change over the revised 2024 capital budget, with emphasis on infrastructure, livelihood support and long-term development initiatives.

Mr Alia described the presentation as an expression of duty, responsibility and optimism, reaffirming his administration’s commitment to addressing the aspirations of the people of Benue.

The speaker of the assembly, Alfred Emberga, thanked the governor for presenting what he described as the third budget of the administration in line with constitutional provisions.

The speaker said that the presentation reflected the governor’s vision and commitment to improving the welfare of Benue citizens and pledged the assembly’s readiness to give the estimates prompt consideration.

He assured that the house would work speedily to process and return the budget, urging ministries, departments and agencies to cooperate with standing committees during budget defence to ensure passage of a workable, people-oriented and transparent 2026 budget.

(NAN)