***says report is compliance benchmark, not comprehensive audit of Nigeria’s public-finance reforms

The Presidency has urged Nigerians to view the United States Department of State’s 2026 Fiscal Transparency Report as a limited compliance assessment rather than a comprehensive appraisal of the public-finance reforms being implemented by the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Special Adviser to the President on Media and Public Communications, Sunday Dare, made the clarification on Thursday in response to the report, which concluded that Nigeria failed to meet the department’s minimum fiscal-transparency standards and recorded “no significant progress” during the review period.

Dare said the report assessed countries against specific criteria set by the US Department of State, particularly the public disclosure of national budget information, government contracts and natural-resource licences, and should therefore not be construed as a full audit of Nigeria’s fiscal-governance architecture.

“The US Fiscal Transparency Report is a specific assessment against the Department of State’s minimum fiscal-transparency requirements, particularly the public disclosure of national budget information, government contracts and natural-resource licenses,” he said.

“It should therefore not be interpreted as a comprehensive assessment of all fiscal and public-financial-management reforms currently underway in Nigeria.”

The presidential spokesman noted that the report itself acknowledged some improvements, including increased availability of budget documents and greater disclosure of public-debt information.

He said other areas highlighted by the US assessment, including procurement disclosure, budget-execution reporting and audit processes, were already receiving attention through ongoing institutional reforms.

According to him, fiscal transparency, accountability and effective public financial management remain priorities of the Federal Government.

Dare cited the government’s open-treasury platform, expanded publication of budget documents and newly released debt data as part of measures aimed at improving public access to fiscal information.

He added that the administration was strengthening digital procurement systems to make government financial information more timely, accessible and reliable.

Dare described the US assessment as an external benchmark that could help Nigeria identify areas requiring further improvement, rather than a definitive verdict on the country’s fiscal-governance reforms.

“The appropriate response, therefore, is neither to dismiss the findings nor to portray them as a complete characterization of Nigeria’s fiscal governance,” he said.

“Rather, the report provides an external benchmark against which existing reforms can be further strengthened.”

He reiterated the administration’s commitment to improving the timeliness and quality of fiscal reporting, strengthening audit institutions and widening access to procurement information.

These measures, he said, were intended to provide citizens, investors and other stakeholders with greater visibility into the management of public resources and reinforce confidence in Nigeria’s fiscal-governance systems.