Akwa Ibom publishes Q2 budget report but fails to show where trillions went — BudgIT

Akwa Ibom’s second-quarter 2026 budget report is public, but its three pages do not show where the state’s trillions of naira went, according to the BudgIT Foundation.

BudgIT said the report contains “significant data gaps” that prevent citizens from meaningfully examining government spending. Akwa Ibom stands out among the 34 Nigerian states that published Q2 2026 budget implementation reports because its document provides too little usable information, the organisation said.

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Publishing a BIR is not enough, but the data must be complete and usable

“Publishing a BIR is not enough, but the data must be complete and usable,” BudgIT said. “While Akwa Ibom State published its Q2 2026 BIR, the report contains significant data gaps that limit public scrutiny of government spending.” The foundation said it formally contacted the state government about the omissions but received no response.

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Transparency requires disclosure, not just publication

The criticism comes as Governor Umo Eno’s administration has received more than ₦2.943 trillion over 38 months, according to revenue data previously reported by PREMIUM TIMES. Without detailed revenue and expenditure figures, citizens have limited ability to determine whether all revenue reached state coffers or how public funds were spent.

BudgIT said the case demonstrates that publishing a fiscal document does not automatically amount to transparency. PREMIUM TIMES reported that Akwa Ibom stopped releasing detailed budget implementation reports in the first quarter of 2025, replacing them with a three-page summary that grew to five pages in the second quarter of 2026. When Eno was asked in a live interview how the accumulated funds were spent, he referred to audited financial statements. The newspaper reported that those statements also lack sufficient detail on capital expenditure.

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A published report can still leave out important information