The Federal Government exceeded its 2024 borrowing target by N4.79tn after a wider-than-projected budget deficit forced it to raise significantly more financing than originally planned, the Budget Office of the Federation has disclosed.

According to the latest Fourth Quarter and Consolidated Budget Implementation Report for 2024, the Federal Government’s new borrowings rose to N12.62tn, exceeding the budgeted N7.83tn by N4.79tn, or 61.2 per cent.

The higher borrowing requirement followed a substantial revenue shortfall, which pushed the fiscal deficit to N13.51tn, well above the approved deficit of N9.18tn. The report showed that aggregate Federal Government revenue stood at N20.98tn, compared with the budget estimate of N25.88tn, representing a shortfall of N4.90tn.