A staggering number of government projects in Nigeria remain uncompleted, with over 56,000 projects nationwide still awaiting completion. According to a former Director-General of the Budget Office, this has been a recurring issue, with a 2011 presidential assessment committee counting 11,886 abandoned federal projects nationwide, valued at N7.78 trillion to finish. This number has remained largely unchanged, with a 2021 survey finding roughly 11,866 abandoned federal buildings alone, valued at N20 trillion.
The procurement process is a critical component in the failure of these projects. A need is often poorly defined, tenders are built on relationships rather than merit, and payments are released without proof of work. The Executive Chairman of the EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, has stated that contract and procurement fraud accounts for more than 90 per cent of public sector fraud cases handled by the Commission. Government estimates also put the annual cost of procurement corruption at roughly $18 billion.
The issue is not just technical, but also political. The National Assembly inserted 11,122 projects worth N6.93 trillion into the 2025 budget alone, with 3,573 assigned directly to federal constituencies and 1,972 to senatorial districts. The Ministry of Agriculture alone received 4,371 projects worth N1.72 trillion, nearly eight times its original capital budget. This has led to a situation where projects are started with no plan to finish them.
The lack of accountability and enforcement of existing laws is also a major issue. The Public Procurement Act 2007 provides a workable legal foundation, but what is missing is the political will to enforce it. The Bureau of Public Procurement under Dr Adebowale Adedokun is pursuing genuine reform, anchored by a mandatory Digital Submission Portal and a professionalisation drive built on formal certification.
Two contracts currently under prosecution illustrate the breakdown in controls. A former Director-General of the National Metallurgical Development Centre in Jos is accused of approving nearly N16.6 million to one contractor for fettling facilities, despite the contractor's alleged failure to perform. In a separate contract, he is accused of approving N51.5 million to another contractor for an electric crucible furnace, again despite alleged non-performance.
Skilful procurement is critical to defining what a project genuinely requires, pricing it against real market costs and contractor capability, running independent tenders, and managing the contract after signature. Until this scrutiny becomes routine, the dividends of democracy that procurement is supposed to deliver will keep arriving late, or not at all.
Ultimately, tracing a contract from need to final payment, naming the point a control was skipped, and asking who benefited is necessary to address the issue. This requires a concerted effort to enforce existing laws and ensure accountability in the procurement process.
Key points
- Poor procurement processes are a major contributor to the failure of government projects in Nigeria.
- The lack of accountability and enforcement of existing laws is a significant issue.
- Skilful procurement is critical to delivering the dividends of democracy.
