The National Assembly Joint Committees on the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) on Tuesday rejected the 2026 budget proposal of the Nigerian Air Force, citing inadequate funding and the country’s worsening security challenges.
The decision was taken during a budget defence session held jointly by the Senate and House of Representatives Committees on Air Force, where the service chiefs presented the Air Force’s 2025 budget performance and proposals for the 2026 fiscal year.
Announcing the outcome of the session, the Chairman of the Joint Committee on Air Force, Senator Osita Ngwu, said lawmakers were unanimous in their rejection of the proposal as presented by the Nigerian Air Force.
He said the committee made the decision after a detailed review of the estimates and prevailing security realities across the country.
‘The Committee unanimously reviewed the presentation by the Air Force and rejected the budget as proposed’, Ngwu said.
According to him, the rejection was based on the assessment that the proposed allocation was grossly inadequate to meet the operational demands placed on the Air Force at a time of heightened insecurity.
‘The budget is inadequate and insufficient to fund the Nigerian Air Force in maintaining the level of firepower and air capability required to curb insurgency at this critical time in the country’, he said.
Nigeria has continued to grapple with multiple security threats, including insurgency in the North-East, banditry in the North-West and parts of the North-Central, as well as kidnapping and other criminal activities across several regions.
The Nigerian Air Force plays a key role in air support operations for ground troops and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.
In response to the funding concerns, Ngwu said the joint committee resolved to set up a six-member panel to engage key stakeholders on the matter.
He said the panel would liaise with the Federal Government, the Budget Office and the leadership of the National Assembly to work out a more realistic and responsive budget proposal for the Air Force.
The revised proposal, he added, would be presented to the Joint Committee on Air Force for consideration and approval.
The committee also called on the Federal Government to fully cooperate with the process, stressing the urgency of strengthening the country’s security architecture.
‘Nigerians urgently need effective action against insurgency’, Ngwu said.
The lawmaker acknowledged the fiscal constraints facing the Federal Government, noting that about 70 per cent of the 2025 capital budget for ministries, departments and agencies had been rolled over into the 2026 fiscal year as part of government policy.
He said the rollover had not translated into meaningful funding, as a significant portion of the capital allocations remained unfunded.
Although about 70 per cent of the 2025 capital budget was rolled over to 2026 for Federal Government ministries, departments and agencies as government’s policy due to funding constraints, Ngwu maintained that a significant portion had still not been released.
He said the committee’s position was guided by the need to ensure that whatever provision was eventually made for the Air Force would be sufficient to meet its operational responsibilities.
He said the decision is therefore based on the premise that whatever funding is provided in the 2026 budget ‘must be sufficient to adequately support the operational needs of the Nigerian Air Force’.
Speaking in a similar vein, the Co-chairman of the committee, Rt. Hon. Kabiru Alhassan, said sustained and increased funding for the Air Force was critical to tackling insecurity nationwide.
He said, ‘the Nigerian Air Force requires substantial funding to effectively combat insurgency, banditry, and other criminal activities across the country’.
