A disagreement over the sharing of N1.969 trillion by the three levels of government is stalling the distribution of federation revenue for the second week running, The Nation gathered yesterday.
The development has affected the payment of January salary to civil/public servants in parts of the country.
Government employees are usually paid within five days of the monthly meeting of the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) where revenue from the federation account is shared.
However, this month has been different, as the funds agreed upon at the January 20, 2026 meeting in Abuja have not yet been released to the three tiers of government.
Sources familiar with the situation attributed the disagreement to the rejection, by Finance Commissioners who normally represent the states at the FAAC meeting, of the amount tabled for sharing.
The commissioners, it was gathered, believed the amount was too small and did not reflect the actual revenue that came in during December 2025.
“The states felt the money brought forward did not match what was realised in December. That is why they did not agree to the distribution,” one of the sources said.
A fresh meeting of the FAAC has been scheduled for Monday to break the deadlock, the source said.
“It is possible that the amount will be adjusted to meet the expectations of the state governments,” he added.
At the January meeting, the FAAC had tabled N1.969 trillion for sharing from a total revenue of N2.585 trillion recorded in December 2025. The meeting was chaired by the Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite.
A breakdown of the revenue shows that N846.5 billion came from Value Added Tax, N1.631 trillion from other statutory sources, and N38.1 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy.
The Federal Government was expected to receive N653.5 billion while the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory were to share N706.4 billion and the 774 local government councils N513.2 billion.
Oil-producing states were also set to receive N96 billion as their 13 percent derivation from oil revenue.
The delay is said to have sparked anxiety in many states, as most of them depend heavily on the monthly FAAC allocation to run their governments.
About 31 states rely on this money for at least 80 percent of their monthly spending, including the payment of workers’ salaries and the funding of basic projects.
One state official, who asked not to be named, said: “without this allocation, it becomes very difficult to meet our obligations, especially salary payments and essential services.”
FAAC is made up of representatives of key government and revenue agencies, including the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, the Nigeria Customs Service, the Federal Inland Revenue Service, state Commissioners of Finance, and representatives of local governments.
As workers across the country wait for their January pay, attention is now on the next FAAC meeting, where it is hoped that the parties involved will reach an agreement and allow the long-delayed funds to be released. (The Nation)
