Nigeria's 2026 federal budget has set aside at least N8.05 billion for the construction, renovation and equipping of churches and mosques across the country, with the allocations spread across 40 budget line items and routed through a wide range of federal agencies, budget tracking platform Tracka has revealed.
The figures, drawn from the approved budget, show that the allocations are being implemented through agencies whose mandates bear little obvious connection to religious infrastructure.
They included the Industrial Arbitration Panel, the Cocoa Research Institute, the Nigerian Building and Road Research Institute (NBRRI), the National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA) and Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto, among others.
Among the allocations listed are N1 billion for the provision and distribution of musical and cultural equipment to churches in Bende Local Government Area (LGA), Abia State, domiciled under the Industrial Arbitration Panel and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment; and another N1 billion for the provision of alternative power solar supply to mosques in Zamfara North Senatorial District, under the Energy Commission of Nigeria and the Federal Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation.
A further N500 million has been allocated for the construction of churches, mosques and support for religious groups in selected farming communities in Gombe State, under NALDA and the Presidency, while N350 million covers the construction of churches, mosques and financial support to religious leaders in Balanga/Billiri Federal Constituency, also in Gombe State, under the same agency.
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Other notable allocations include N350 million for the completion and furnishing of Marabar Musawa Jumu'at Mosque and Learning Centre in Katsina State; N280 million for the construction of Al-Quareeb Community Mosque and Palace in Oyo Federal Constituency; and N280 million each for the renovation of mosques and provision of mini-grids in Zamfara Central Senatorial District and the renovation of Central Mosque Minna, Paiko Central Mosque and provision of carpets.
The list runs to 40 entries, with allocations ranging from N42.7 million to N1 billion and covering projects in states including Kano, Sokoto, Kebbi, Kaduna, Jigawa, Gombe, Ogun, Lagos, Bayelsa, Enugu, Taraba and others.
Several of the projects are listed as ongoing, suggesting they were carried over from previous budget cycles.
The disclosure has prompted debate about federal spending priorities at a time when many Nigerians continue to face acute economic hardship.
Critics questioned why funds earmarked for religious buildings are being routed through agencies with no evident connection to the projects in question.
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