Katsina State Governor, Dikko Radda, has proposed a N828.64bn budget for 2027, allocating almost three-quarters of the spending plan to capital projects as his administration seeks to prioritise infrastructure, education, agriculture, healthcare and rural development.
Radda presented the appropriation bill, tagged “Building Your Future IV,” to the Katsina State House of Assembly on Tuesday, with N637.91bn, or 76.98 per cent, earmarked for capital expenditure and N190.73bn, representing 23.02 per cent, for recurrent spending.
The proposal is N69.23bn below the state’s approved 2026 budget, with Radda saying the reduction reflected a more cautious assessment of expected revenue and expenditure.
“We took a pragmatic, disciplined and realistic view of both revenue and expenditure.
“We reviewed every available funding source to ensure fiscal balance, strengthen implementation and reduce the risk of shortfalls,” the governor told lawmakers.
Radda said the spending plan was also built around demands gathered directly from residents during a budget exercise conducted across the state’s 361 wards.
He said each ward would receive a special project chosen by residents, while information gathered during the exercise would determine government interventions in areas including agriculture, small businesses, water and sanitation, women’s empowerment, the environment and security.
“Our people named their needs, weighed them and ranked them. This budget therefore answers the real and pressing needs of our communities, not assumptions made from afar,” Radda said.
The Social Sector received the largest overall allocation, N317.73bn, followed by the Economic Sector with N303.17bn. Administration was allocated N198.55bn, while N9.19bn was earmarked for Law and Justice.
Education, works and housing, agriculture, health and rural development will together receive N325.45bn from the capital budget.
Basic and higher education accounts for N83.82bn, works and housing N71.60bn, agriculture and livestock N65.88bn, health N53.64bn and rural development N50.51bn.
Radda said the allocations were intended to expand school infrastructure, improve healthcare, increase agricultural production, develop roads and housing and address infrastructure deficits in rural communities.
The governor also used the budget presentation to give an account of his administration’s 2026 spending, saying total expenditure stood at N295.19bn as of August 28, representing 32.88 per cent of the approved budget. Capital expenditure accounted for N193.02bn.
“We expect this figure to close much higher in our third and fourth quarterly reports for 2026,” he said.
Among the projects and interventions highlighted were N13.03bn spent on school rehabilitation under the TESS programme, N10.53bn under AGILE and N5.88bn on primary school interventions through UBEC.
The government also spent N2.07bn on examination fees and N1.26bn on scholarships, according to the governor.
In healthcare, Radda said N4.71bn had been spent on the State Emergency Medical Service and Ambulance System Programme, while more than N9.59bn had been invested since 2025 in equipping the Medical Imaging Centre at General Amadi Rimi Specialist Hospital for conversion into a cancer and imaging centre.
The state also committed N21.43bn to fertiliser procurement and spent N3.11bn on rural access roads, he said.
On security, Radda disclosed that more than N7.5bn had been spent in 2026 on security equipment, allowances and operations.
While acknowledging persistent insecurity in some frontline communities, he said improved security had enabled some farmers to return to their fields.
The governor identified inadequate staffing and learning materials, pressure on healthcare services, shortages of potable water, sanitation problems and infrastructure deficits among the challenges still confronting the state.
Responding to the presentation, the Speaker of the House, Nasir Daura, promised that lawmakers would scrutinise the proposal and pass it “within the shortest time”.
“Your Excellency, as you present this final budget of your first tenure, we assure you that this Honourable House will study it and pass it within the shortest time,” Daura said.
He praised the relationship between the executive and legislature, saying their cooperation had supported development across infrastructure, security, education, healthcare, agriculture and human capital development.
Daura said the 8th Assembly had passed more than 50 bills, considered motions and conducted oversight activities during its tenure.
The Speaker’s remarks also carried a personal significance: Tuesday’s presentation was his final budget reception of Radda as Speaker of the 8th Assembly.
“This will be the last time I will receive you in this capacity as Speaker of the 8th Assembly, as I look forward, by the grace of Allah, to serving our people in another chamber,” he said.
Daura also declared the Assembly’s support for Radda’s second-term bid, as well as Tinubu and other APC candidates in the 2027 elections.
He urged lawmakers to remain united and called on both returning and incoming legislators to preserve cooperation with the executive in the interest of Katsina State.
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