By Iyunade Grace
The Federation Account Allocation Committee handed out roughly N2.094 trillion to the three tiers of government for the month of October, a hair‑under the N2.103 trillion that was shared in September. That modest dip of about N9 billion, or 0.4 percent, still leaves a hefty pot for the federal, state and local governments to work with as they try to keep their budgets balanced in a tough economic climate.
Statutory revenue, which is the backbone of the allocation, actually rose by N36 billion compared with the previous month, reaching about N1.376 trillion. The increase helped cushion the blow from a sharp fall in VAT collections, which slipped by roughly N152 billion to N670 billion. On the plus side, the Electronic Money Transfer Levy contributed N47.9 billion, adding a small but welcome boost to the overall pool.
The federal government walked away with N758 billion, a figure that includes N650 billion of statutory revenue, N100 billion from VAT and N7.2 billion from the EMTL. That chunk represents the largest single share, reflecting the centre’s responsibility for national defence, debt servicing and other federal obligations.
State governments collectively received N689 billion. Their slice comprised N330 billion in statutory funds, N335 billion from VAT and N23.9 billion from the EMTL. While the statutory portion is lower than the federal share, the VAT component is substantial, giving states a bit more flexibility for recurrent spending and development projects.
Local government councils got N505 billion, broken down into N254 billion statutory, N235 billion VAT and N16.8 billion EMTL. In addition, the oil‑producing states received a derivation payment of N141 billion, which is 13 percent of mineral revenue and is earmarked for infrastructure and community development in those regions.
Overall, the October distribution shows a resilient revenue base despite the dip in VAT, thanks largely to the rise in statutory income. The figures suggest that while the fiscal landscape remains volatile, the government at all levels still has enough resources to meet core obligations and keep some development momentum going, though they’ll be watching the VAT trend closely in the months ahead.
