BUDGET TRACKING: Osun recorded woeful budget performance in 2024 -Reports....By Adebayo Adedeji

The budget performance report of the Osun State government for the first quarter of 2024 published May 7, 2024, has revealed that priority was given to the welfare of the state governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, as only budget to the office of the governor recorded 40% performance.

Key sectors like health, agriculture, education, youth affairs, sports and special needs received miserable allocations ranging from 0.3% to 16%  against the original budget for the year.

For instance, the education sector which was billed to receive N37.6bn for the year received paltry N6bn in the first quarter, representing 16.7% of the budget for the year.

As if that was the worst, the ministry of agriculture and food security projected to receive N3.7bn for the year was only able to access N164.9m, representing 4.3% of the total forecast for the year.

The youth affairs sector only received N12m, constituting 0.3%, of the N4.3bn earmarked for it in the 2024 budget. 

In the health sector, only N3.4bn, 13.9% of the N24bn estimated for it in the 2024 budget, was released. In fact, N35m, 2.2% of the N1.6bn planned for the Osun State Primary Health Care Development Board, was released to it. 

Other sectors which received pittance in the first quarter of the year include ministry of sports and special needs ( received N246m, 11.9% of N2bn budget), water resources received N211m ( 2.6%), rural development and community affairs received N167m ( 2.2%), industry and commerce N93m( 4.3%) while women affairs, children and social affairs got N4m (1.6%) of the budget meant for it.

Social Contribution ( i.e NHIS contribution, contribution to pension, group life assurance to workers) got 8.2%, meaning N1.4bn of the N17.4bn budgeted for the year was received.

Similarly, in the first three months of 2024, the government of Osun paid 8.2%, meaning N1.4bn of the N17.4bn budgeted for the year, for Social Contribution ( i.e NHIS contribution, contribution to pension, group life assurance to workers), whereas N1.5bn, representing 7.6% of the N20.5bn budget, was paid to settle Social Benefits (i.e gratuity, pension, gratuity arrears, pension arrears, etc).

Further breakdown of allocation for Social Benefits indicates no money was released in the first quarter to settle N11.4bn gratuity and pension arrears budget for the year.

Meanwhile, the Government House, which has, in its budget head, few agencies and units such as the Osun State Agency for Control of Aids, Ministry of Federal Affairs, Osun State Security Network and Amotekun Agency, Public Procurement Agency and Osun State Emergency Management Agency, is to receive N15bn in the 2024 budget. Of this sum, N13bn is to go to the Office of the Governor, for the entertainment, refreshment and allowances of the governor and few acolytes.

Strangely, of the total budget for the governor's office for the year, N5.2bn representing 40.3 % of the total budget earmarked for the office, had already been disbursed. Of this, only measly N400m was spent on personnel/workers. 

While the office of the governor, which generated paltry N17m as revenue in the first quarter, received the lion's share of N5.2bn, important agencies in the Government House like Amotekun and Osun Emergency Management Agency received sorrowful N73m and N15m, representing 6.4% and 13% respectively, of the money voted for them in the 2024 budget.

A quarter is 25% of the year.