The rising revenues accruing to state governments must translate into improved living standards for citizens, the Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, Muda Yusuf, has said.
Yusuf said the increased fiscal resources available to states had created a greater responsibility for governors to deliver tangible improvements in public services and infrastructure.
“States have more to do with all the resources going to them now. We should hold them more accountable,” he said.
He said citizens should see measurable outcomes in critical areas including roads, healthcare, public transportation, education, agricultural infrastructure, security, power and enterprise support.
His comments followed data showing that 35 states, excluding Rivers State, received N4.54tn from Federation Account Allocation Committee and generated N2.43tn in internally generated revenue between January and June 2026, bringing their combined revenue to N6.97tn.
Federal Government, 36 states and 774 local governments shared a cumulative N93.216tn as revenue from the Federation Account between 2017 and 2025, with more than half of the amount distributed in the three years following the economic reforms introduced by the Federal Government in 2023.
Yusuf said the economic reforms had significantly expanded the fiscal capacity of state governments through higher statutory allocations and stronger IGR in some states.
He warned that increased revenues would have little impact on citizens if additional funds were largely absorbed by recurrent expenditure or projects that did not directly improve welfare.
According to him, the priority should be to convert the increased fiscal space into a visible development dividend for citizens, particularly amid continuing economic pressures on households.
The revenue increase has also intensified scrutiny of how states are deploying additional funds received following the removal of petrol subsidies.
Yusuf said the greater resources available to state governments must therefore be matched by stronger accountability and measurable improvements in citizens’ quality of life.
An Abuja-based economist, Babatunde Ajayi, said that accountability is poorest at the grassroots, noting that there is less monitoring in states and local governments but obsession for the Federal Government.
“The Federal Government is just dishing out cash to states and local governments without any form of monitoring. States are poorly managing the resources. Unfortunately, no one seems to be watching. Local governments are even worse. Their offices are just meant for political gatherings and cash distributions. This explains why people at the grassroots are not yet feeling the difference.”
