PORT HARCOURT/Nigeria: The Rivers State Executive Council has approved a proposed ₦1.854 trillion budget for the 2026 fiscal year, christened the “Budget of Resilience for Growth and Development.”
The approval was granted on Friday, January 2, 2026, after deliberations at the first Executive Council meeting of the year, held at the Executive Council Chambers, Government House, Port Harcourt, and presided over by Governor Siminalayi Fubara, with Deputy Governor Ngozi Odu in attendance.
Briefing journalists after the meeting, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Economic Matters and Social Development, Peter Medee, said the council approved an aggregate budget estimate of ₦1,854,248,734,475.76 for the provision of goods and services in the state in 2026.
“We are here to say that the State Executive Council has approved the aggregate sum for the provision of goods and services of Rivers State for the year 2026 in the figure of ₦1,854,248,734,475.76,” Medee stated.
He explained that the proposed budget was deliberately structured to reflect the development priorities of the administration while addressing critical obligations of the state. According to him, the main focus of the 2026 estimate is to complete ongoing projects and settle outstanding commitments in key sectors.
Medee said priority areas in the budget include infrastructure, health, education, agriculture, human capacity development, youth empowerment, culture, tourism and information and communications technology.
He added that the budget theme was approved in line with the administration’s recovery and consolidation agenda. “Despite the challenges, the Rivers State Government has remained resilient, focused and committed to achieving its targets for the benefit of the people,” he said.
Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Communications, Honour Sirawoo, said the budget proposal underwent detailed scrutiny before the final figure was endorsed by the council.
“The Governor Siminalayi Fubara administration is determined to bridge lost ground. That is why a very robust budget figure was arrived at after conscious and thorough deliberations,” Sirawoo noted.
He said the government’s budgeting approach is anchored on value-for-money spending and improving the overall well-being of Rivers residents.
The Special Adviser on Finance, Emmanuel Frank Fubara, was also part of the post-meeting briefing.
