The Senate has passed the N49.7tn 2025 Budget for a second reading.

The budget was passed on Thursday during plenary after various deliberations on the general principles of the bill by senators who applauded President Bola Tinubu for his good intentions for the country.

The budget was later referred to the Committee on Appropriations after being put to a voice vote by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, who presided over the session.

The Committee on Appropriations is chaired by Senator Solomon Adeola.

Tinubu had on Wednesday presented the 2025 Budget of Restoration to a joint session of the National Assembly, targeting peace and prosperity with a revenue projection of ₦34.82tn to fund the aggregate expenditure of ₦47.9tn.

In the proposed budget, which has a deficit of ₦13.0tn, Tinubu earmarked ₦4.91tn for Defence and Security, ₦4.06tn for Infrastructure, ₦3.5tn for Education, and ₦2.48tn for Health.

The President, in his budget speech, also disclosed that ₦15.81tn is allocated for debt servicing, with salient parameters including 2.06 million barrels of oil production per day, an exchange rate of ₦1,500 to a US dollar, and an inflation rate of 15%, down from the current 34.6%.

He said, “The numbers for our 2025 budget proposal tell a bold and exciting story of the direction we are taking to retool and revamp the socio-economic fabric of our society.

“In 2025, we are targeting ₦34.82tn in revenue to fund the budget.“Government expenditure in the same year is projected to be ₦47.90tn, including ₦15.81tn for debt servicing.

“A total of ₦13.08tn, or 3.89 per cent of GDP, will make up the budget deficit.

“This is an ambitious but necessary budget to secure our future.“

The Budget projects inflation will decline from the current rate of 34.6 per cent to 15 per cent next year, while the exchange rate will improve from approximately 1,700 naira per US dollar to 1,500 naira and a base crude oil production assumption of 2.06 million barrels per day (mbpd).

“These projections are based on the following observations: (i) Reduced importation of petroleum products alongside increased export of finished petroleum products, (ii) Bumper harvests, driven by enhanced security, reducing reliance on food imports, (iii) Increased foreign exchange inflows through Foreign Portfolio Investments, and (iv) Higher crude oil output and exports, coupled with a substantial reduction in upstream oil and gas production costs.”

Tinubu informed federal lawmakers that a series of economic reforms being carried out by his government are yielding positive results, saying, “Our economy grew by 3.46 per cent in the third quarter of 2024, up from 2.54 per cent in the third quarter of 2023.“

Our Foreign Reserves now stand at nearly 42 billion US dollars, providing a robust buffer against external shocks,” he added.