The Ebonyi State Government only spent 6.2 percent of its health sector capital budget in the first half of 2026. Education spending also fell short of what was planned. This is according to the state’s 2026 second-quarter Budget Performance Report.
The report shows that the health sector got only N2.05 billion from its N33.37 billion capital budget between January and June. This means the performance rate was just 6.2 percent.
Reports have highlighted problems in the Ebonyi State health sector. Primary health centres are now seen as dangerous due to serious shortages of staff and medical equipment.
Education, which received one of the biggest capital budgets for the year, also showed weak spending. From the N140.29 billion set aside for capital projects, only N14.99 billion was released in the first six months, which is a performance rate of 10.69 percent.
These numbers come despite the state reporting total revenues of N210.64 billion during the same period.
According to the report, this revenue included an opening balance of N48.23 billion carried over from 2025. It also included N113.87 billion from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), N19.74 billion from Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), N405.04 million from other sources, and N28.39 billion from loans.
The report further reveals that the state spent N120.42 billion between January and June. Out of this, N62.61 billion went to capital projects while N57.81 billion was for regular expenses.
Education spending
PREMIUM TIMES reported that Ebonyi State, under Governor Francis Nwifuru, allocated 19.86 percent of its N885.81 billion budget for education. This puts it among the top states in the South-east for education spending. The 19.86 percent is close to the 26 percent target set in Nigeria’s National Policy on Education and recommended by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation.
But the spending figures for the first half of the year raise questions about reaching the goal of at least 80 percent by the end of the year.
A closer look at education spending shows that the Ministry of Tertiary Education got the most money, with N12.82 billion released from its N114.14 billion capital budget.
The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education received N2.17 billion out of its N26.15 billion capital budget.
Ministries without capital releases
The report also shows that some ministries did not receive any capital releases even with approved budgets.
The Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Welfare, which has a capital budget of N703.73 million, got no capital funding during this period.
The Ministry of Skills Development and Job Creation also saw zero capital releases despite a budget of N1.7 billion.
These zero releases suggest that projects in these ministries may not have started in the first half of the year.
Works leads capital spending
Among the ministries and departments, the Ministry of Works received the most capital funding in absolute terms. The Ministry of Finance got N16.6 billion, followed by the Ministry of Tertiary Education with N12.82 billion.
This pattern shows the state’s focus on infrastructure projects over many social sector investments during the review period.
Overhead spending
While capital releases were low in many areas, some government offices had high running costs.
The Office of the Secretary to the State Government had the highest overhead spending among all ministries and agencies, receiving N23.27 billion. This accounted for 61 percent of its N38.26 billion overhead budget.
The Office of the Governor was next, with N4.62 billion, which is 40.9 percent of its N11.31 billion overhead budget.
The report did not give details on what specific activities the overhead funding covered. The budget implementation figures highlight the gap between approved budgets and actual releases in the first half of the year, especially in important areas like health and education, where capital investments are key to improving public services.
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