Nigeria suffered ₦4.5tr budget deficit in Q2 2024

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revealed that the country’s budget deficit hit ₦4 trillion in the second quarter of 2024.

This is according to the quarterly economic report released by the apex bank.

According to the report, the federal government’s retained revenue stood at ₦2.3 trillion. The government’s expenditure fell short by ₦4.5 trillion, as it spent ₦6.83 trillion in the same period.

Further analysis shows that the federal government’s independent revenue stands at ₦1.2 trillion, with its Value Added Tax (VAT) pool account having ₦216.2 billion.

The government has also generated ₦571 billion from exchange gains, the data shows.

It is no secret that the government has been eyeing ways to generate additional income. One of the proposed ways is been the windfall tax which was imposed on banks’ forex gains.