Nigeria Spends ₦5.15tn on Security as Insecurity Persists

The Federal Government has disbursed ₦5.15tn in special intervention funds to the military and related security agencies between November 2023 and September 2026, raising fresh questions about the impact of the massive spending as terrorism, banditry and kidnapping continue to threaten communities across the country.

Financial records from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) show that the government received ₦5.65tn into a dedicated special intervention account during the period, with ₦5.15tn, representing 91.15 per cent of the total, subsequently disbursed.

The figures reveal the scale of additional funding committed to security operations outside the regular annual budgetary allocations to the Ministry of Defence and other security institutions.

However, the records do not provide a detailed breakdown of the military operations, equipment purchases, personnel expenses or specific security projects financed through the intervention programme.

This absence of detailed expenditure information has brought accountability into focus, particularly as Nigerians continue to experience attacks, kidnappings and other violent crimes in different parts of the country.

The document, titled Ledger of Special Intervention Programme for Nigerian Military September 2026, was prepared by the Federation Account Department of the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.

It was presented to the Technical Sub-Committee of FAAC at its meeting in Abuja on October 14, 2026.

According to the records, the ₦5.15tn was released through 30 payment transactions between November 8, 2023, and September 23, 2026. The account received funds through 33 separate transactions.

The intervention programme began with a ₦100bn transfer in October 2023, representing an allocation for September of that year. The first payment of ₦100bn to the military was recorded on November 8, 2023.

Another ₦100bn was received on November 20 and paid out on December 20, bringing the total amount received and disbursed by the end of December 2023 to ₦300bn.

The government maintained the funding arrangement throughout 2024, with regular transfers of ₦100bn and corresponding payments to military and paramilitary agencies.

Between January and December 2024, the intervention account received and disbursed ₦1.2tn, bringing cumulative receipts and payments to ₦1.5tn.

The arrangement continued into 2025. During the first nine months of that year, the account received ₦900bn and disbursed the same amount, bringing cumulative payments to ₦2.4tn by September 1, 2025.

The funding pattern changed significantly in 2026, when individual transfers increased from the previous ₦100bn monthly arrangement to amounts ranging between ₦200bn and ₦500bn.

In March 2026, the government transferred ₦200bn from the FAAC Withheld Account. Another ₦250bn was transferred from non-oil revenue in May, while a separate payment of ₦130bn was recorded for security agencies from the FAAC Withheld Account.

The ledger also contained a payment of ₦120bn to the Consolidated Pool Account II Treasury Single Account in June. Unlike other entries, the transaction was not expressly described as a payment to military or paramilitary agencies.

On June 16, 2026, a ₦400bn transfer from non-oil revenue was reversed and replaced with a fresh ₦500bn transfer. The same day, ₦500bn was recorded as paid to military and paramilitary agencies.

Further transfers of ₦500bn were recorded in July, August and September, with corresponding payments to the security agencies.

The figures show that the intervention account received ₦3.25tn in 2026 up to October 14, compared with ₦1.2tn throughout 2024.

Payments during the period reached ₦2.75tn, representing about 53.40 per cent of the total ₦5.15tn disbursed since the programme began.

The ₦2.75tn paid out in 2026 was also higher than the combined ₦2.4tn disbursed between November 2023 and September 2025.

Despite the large payments, the account had an outstanding balance of ₦500bn as of October 14, 2026. This represented 8.85 per cent of the total funds received.

The balance followed a fresh ₦500bn transfer recorded on October 14 without a corresponding payment in the ledger. It therefore represented money remaining in the intervention account, not funds already confirmed as disbursed to security agencies.

The continued security challenges across the country have intensified public interest in how the intervention funds are being used and whether the spending is producing measurable improvements.

In the North-East, the military continues to confront Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province, while banditry and mass kidnappings remain major concerns in parts of the North-West and North-Central regions.

Several communities have also suffered attacks by armed groups, leading to deaths, displacement and disruption of farming and other economic activities.

The situation has placed considerable pressure on government finances, with security spending covering operations, intelligence gathering, logistics and efforts to protect vulnerable communities.

Beyond the financial intervention, the Federal Government has also begun reviewing its national security policy to respond to changing threats.

The National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, disclosed this on Thursday during the inauguration of a committee responsible for reviewing the 2019 National Security Strategy and developing a new framework for 2026.

Ribadu, who was represented by retired Major General Sarkin Bello, said Nigeria’s security environment had changed considerably since the previous review, making a fresh assessment necessary.

He identified terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, cyber threats, misinformation, economic challenges, food insecurity and environmental problems as issues requiring a broader national security response.

The committee’s work is expected to produce a framework that connects national defence with economic stability, good governance and the protection of citizens.

While the ₦5.15tn intervention demonstrates the scale of government funding directed towards security, the absence of a detailed breakdown of its use leaves important questions unanswered.

For Nigerians affected by insecurity, the central issue is not only how much government spends on security, but whether the money translates into safer communities, fewer attacks and stronger protection for lives and property.