Nigeria: Tinubu Govt Reacts to U.S. Fiscal Transparency Test Findings

The Federal Government has said that it will use the latest fiscal transparency report by the United States Department of State as an external benchmark to further strengthen ongoing reforms in public financial management.

The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Public Communications, Sunday Dare, made this known in a statement on Thursday, while reacting to the report that assessed Nigeria against the minimum fiscal transparency requirements of the US Department of State.

Nigeria failed the minimum fiscal transparency requirements for the second time in a row with the U.S Department of State saying the country made no significant progress in improving its financial management and opening up its public finances in 2025, according to reports.

Only 73 of the 139 governments and the Palestinian Authority assessed by the department in its 2026 Fiscal Transparency Report released Tuesday meet minimum standards.

Of the 67 which did not, 14 were marked as making significant progress, while 53, including Nigeria, were marked as making no progress.

Reacting to the feedback, Dare said the Federal Government took note of the findings but called for proper contextualization, stressing that the report should not be taken as a comprehensive assessment of Nigeria’s fiscal governance.

The US Fiscal Transparency Report focused particularly on public disclosure of information about the national budget, government contracts and natural-resource licences, he said.

“It should therefore not be seen as a comprehensive assessment of all the ongoing fiscal and public financial management reforms in Nigeria,” Dare said.

“The report itself admits that Nigeria has made progress in making budget documents and debt obligations public, he said.

But he said the government recognized the concerns raised in the areas of procurement disclosure, budget-execution reporting and audit processes.

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“The issues raised, particularly in relation to procurement disclosure, budget-execution reporting and audit processes, are areas that the government takes seriously and where ongoing institutional reforms are intended to bring further improvements,” he said.

Government Emphasizes Transparency Initiatives
Dare said Nigeria had put in place a number of measures to improve fiscal transparency, including the Open Treasury initiative, public budget documentation, debt disclosures and reforms to public procurement.

He also said the Federal Government was strengthening digital procurement and other systems for better access, reliability and timeliness of public financial information.

Therefore, the right response is neither to reject the findings nor to represent them as a total picture of Nigeria’s fiscal governance. “Rather, the report offers an outside benchmark that can be used to further bolster existing reforms,” Dare said.

He said the administration of President Bola Tinubu was committed to improving the quality and timeliness of fiscal reporting, strengthening audit institutions and increasing access to procurement information.

Dare added that the government will continue to work to make sure that citizens, investors and other stakeholders are better informed about the management and use of public resources.

The ultimate goal was to build a fiscal system that was transparent, accountable and credible, he said.

“Ultimately the objective is the same: a more transparent, accountable and credible fiscal system that enhances public confidence, supports investment and ensures that public resources are managed efficiently and in the national interest,” he said.