By Ojotule Romanus
Governor Ahmed Usman Odoodo has signed the 2026 appropriation budget of N820.49 billion into law.
Speaking at the event, the governor said the exercise marked another significant milestones in the journey towards building a prosperous and inclusive kogi State.
He assured that with the signing of the 2026 Appropriation Bill into law, the road was now clear for the implementation of the state’s budget, which aims to stimulate shared development in the state.
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“I am pleased to have signed into law the 2026 appropriation budget christened,” Budget Of Shared Prosperity; Driving Sustainable Growth For All”.
He appreciated members of the Kogi State House of Assembly for the meticulous, deligent, and patriotic work on the appropriation bill , stressing that their thorough scrutiny, constructive engagement and timely passage of the budget underscores their deep commitment to the growth and development of Kogi State.
“We have so many infrastructural decay, the market is there, we lost people everyday, as at the time the idea of the International Market was conceived, the location was excellent, but as it is now, it is no longer the best location for our people because our people are dying everyday while struggling to earn a living, hence, the reason why we have to relocate the international market.
“In terms of aviation, we don’t have airport, how do we develop the state. We have to take the advantage of our closeness to Abuja. Mr. Speaker, let me inform this House, we have painstakingly taken our time to look at the design of the Airport, we engaged about seven (7 ) consultants ,professionals to look at the design, it took us almost nine (9) months. The design has passed every stage and it is completed .
“Mr. Speaker, before the end of January 2026, we are going to commence the procurement process. It is going to be a credit to us us because we are jointly taking that decision. I am happy that the House has looked at our request, it is not for our personal projects, it is not for the Assembly projects, it is Kogi State project.
“I am going to deploy this facilities once approved by the body and funds are released, I am going to communicate the House, we will look at it together and we are going to supervise the project together because transparency is key. We have our integrity, we are going to account for whatever we are doing today as the drivers for our dear state.
While assuring that his administration remains firmly committed to physical discipline, transparency and prudent management of state resources, Governor Ododo promised that the appropriation law would be implemented strictly in accordance with the law.
He commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his bold reforms which he said have significantly boosted the state revenue generation making effective implementation of 2026 budget achievable.
“From the education to health care, agriculture to road infrastructure and women and youth empowerment, our administration has recorded modest but impactful achievements. We have strengthened access to quality education, improved health care delivery, supported farmers to boost food security and expanded road networks and empowered women”.
Governor further reassured residents of the state, that his administration would continue to do more for the people in the 2026 budget ; just as he assured that 2026 would be a more secured and prosperous year for the state.
He used the occasion to urge Kogites to continue to adhere strictly to the laid down security protocols stressing that security remains a shared responsibility and that with the collaboration of all stakeholders, Kogi State would be safe for all.
In a related development, the Kogi State House of Assembly has passed five bills into law.
The bills includes; a law to provide for the Authorisation of Expenditures from consolidated Revenue Funds for Kogi State Government for the year ending 31th December 2026 ( Appropriation law 2026), Kogi State Audit Law 2025, Kogi State Internal Revenue Services( Establishment) Law 2025, Kogi State Taxes and Levies ( Approved List Collection Law) 2025, Kogi State Pool Betting and Gaming Machine ( Control, Levy and Taxation law) 2025.
Speaking at the event, the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, RT. Hon Umar Aliu stated, that the exercise was in consonance with the provision of section 100 subsection 3 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria ( 1999), as amended.
He then forwarded three copies each of the state laws that were duly passed by the House on Tuesday, the 31th day of December, 2025 respectively for the governor’s assent.
“A copy each of the law will be sent to the Assembly and Judiciary respectively for their records while the third copy of the law will be retained by your office for use by the Executive Arm of Government” he further added.
