Indigenous contractors have brought activities at the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja to a standstill, protesting the government's failure to settle a staggering N760 billion debt for verified capital projects completed in 2024.
Contractors Take Protest to Finance Ministry Gates
Under the banner of the All Indigenous Contractors Association of Nigeria (AICAN), the business owners on Tuesday barricaded the main entrance to the ministry's headquarters. They vowed to remain and disrupt operations until their demands for payment are met. This action follows a similar protest last month at the National Assembly, which forced the House of Representatives to suspend plenary and issue a seven-day ultimatum to key officials.
Those officials include the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun; the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu; and the Accountant General of the Federation, Shamsudeen Ogunjimi. The Senate, led by spokesperson Adeyemi Adaramodu, had previously intervened to persuade the contractors to suspend their earlier demonstration.
Financial Distress and Broken Promises
AICAN President, Jackson Nwosu, revealed the severe impact of the non-payment. He stated that many members are facing financial ruin after sourcing funds from commercial banks based on government assurances of prompt settlement. Despite holding meetings with Minister Wale Edun following the last protest, Nwosu said the discussions have yielded no concrete results.
"On Thursday last week, we had a meeting with the minister, but he was still avoiding mentioning when the government will pay. That is what they have been doing," Nwosu explained. "We have decided to take to the streets of Abuja from Tuesday to express our displeasure."
The contractors insist they have completed and verified projects across several ministries and agencies. Payment warrants issued in September for the N760 billion—the verified portion of a total debt exceeding N2 trillion—remain unpaid. They accuse the government of prioritizing payments to foreign contractors with connections to officials over domestic firms.
Systemic Budget Implementation Failures
The protest highlights a persistent crisis in Nigeria's budget implementation. The government has struggled with the capital expenditure component since 2023, leading to repeated extensions of project deadlines. The implementation of the 2023 capital projects spilled into 2024, and the 2024 projects have now been extended to December. The 2025 budget implementation is yet to commence.
Stakeholders point fingers at the government's new bottom-up cash planning policy, describing it as clumsy and a major cause of funding delays. Official data from the Budget Office's fourth quarter 2024 report shows that while N5.81 trillion of the N11.59 trillion capital budget was released and cash-backed, only N3.27 trillion (81.91%) had been utilized by Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) as of June 30th.
This situation persists despite the National Assembly's authorisation for the government to borrow over N1 trillion specifically to finance these outstanding contractor debts. The continuing deadlock threatens to cripple future project execution and erode trust in government contracts, pushing indigenous businesses to the brink.
