Nigeria’s revenue generation has spiked since the 2023 fuel subsidy removal. In 2023, internally generated revenue (IGR) was ₦2.24 trillion, climbing to ₦3.63 trillion in 2024, and ₦3.6 trillion in 2025. Lagos, Rivers, and the FCT remained the top revenue-generating jurisdictions post-subsidy removal. In 2022 and 2021, before the subsidy removal, IGR was recorded at ₦1.9 trillion and ₦1.8 trillion, respectively, revealing a significant increase in revenue generation by state governments since 2023. Nigeria’s Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) allocations also increased, recording ₦4.49 trillion and ₦5.81 trillion in 2023 and 2024, respectively, and ₦4.4 trillion in the first seven months of 2025 alone. State governments received a total of ₦13.8 trillion between June 2023 and June 2025, indicating consistently higher allocations since 2023; however, subnational development interventions in education, security, healthcare, and other public services remain limited.
Nigeria’s current economic climate is harsh, especially for the average Nigerian. National health insurance covers only 9% of the population, 10.5 million children are out of school, infrastructure and road development remain critically poor, and waste management infrastructure is inadequate. It is obvious why Nigerians are quick to assign blame, holding the federal government accountable for these institutional deficiencies without analysing the shared responsibilities in Nigeria’s decentralised system. Every tier of government has its part to play in the development of the nation and in improving the living standards of the people. With increased revenue allocation across state, local, and federal governments, development initiatives, projects, and investments should have increased correspondingly. The existing deficit is why citizens must hold every tier of government accountable, looking beyond the offices and candidates to the quantifiable results and improvements in the living standards of Nigerians under every administration.
Federal vs State vs Local Government Responsibilities
According to the 1999 Constitution, every tier of government has its respective roles and responsibilities. As the highest tier of government, the Federal government is responsible for executive, legislative, and judicial functions. It plays a central role in national security, fiscal policy, and matters on the exclusive legislative list. Significant federal policies and legislation include the 2023 fuel subsidy removal, the 2023 Electricity Act, the 2025 Tax Laws, and the NIMC Act 2026. State governments and elected governors are responsible for sub-national development in areas including education, healthcare, agriculture, and infrastructure. They also enact laws within their jurisdiction, within their constitutional powers. Local governments are closest to the people because they are responsible for providing essential public services at the grassroots level.
As responsibilities are shared between all three tiers of government, accountability should be shared as well. Take education and healthcare, for example: The Federal Ministry of Education is responsible for setting the overall policy direction in Nigeria’s education sector. It also manages tertiary education and some secondary schools (FG-owned Unity Schools). State governments directly manage senior secondary schools, while local governments are tasked with the provision of basic education (primary and junior secondary). Despite the decentralised system, the education sector still faces structural bottlenecks, including dilapidated infrastructure across public schools, inadequate funding, shortages of qualified professionals, insecurity, and regional disparities.
The federal budget allocation for education in 2026 was ₦3.25 trillion, representing just 5.15% of the entire budget, which remained unchanged from 2025 and is well below UNESCO’s 15-20% recommendation, underscoring a critical funding deficit in the sector. Additionally, state governments continue to leave Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) funds unaccessed, despite the funds being established to facilitate the development of schools at state and local levels. As of March 2026, at least 21 states and the FCT had yet to access the funds, and the Commission urged state governments to use the ₦267 billion in previously released funds for infrastructural development and improving educational outcomes. State governments should be leading development in the education sector, particularly in primary and secondary education, given their significant constitutional and statutory responsibilities in the sector; however, the sector remains underfunded, and the quality of education continues to decline.
Responsibilities in the healthcare sector, like education, are tripartite. The Federal government controls policies, funds and manages tertiary healthcare, trains healthcare workers, and coordinates health insurance coverage. It also oversees specialised health care services such as teaching hospitals, federal medical centres, specialist hospitals, and medical research institutes. State governments provide secondary healthcare, oversee state-owned hospitals, hire medical personnel, ensure adequate equipment in their facilities, and coordinate malaria prevention and maternal care. Local governments manage primary healthcare centres, vaccination, and antenatal care.
All three tiers of government work together to ensure that Nigerians receive adequate healthcare services when they need them; yet, the current state of the sector is discouraging. 76% of Nigeria’s total healthcare expenditure comes from out-of-pocket (OOP) spending. In 2023, total healthcare expenditure was $15.2 billion; government spending accounted for $2.17 billion, international aid accounted for $1.93 billion, and a whopping $10.7 billion came from out-of-pocket payments, revealing just how much Nigerians spend on healthcare services, with 90% of the population uninsured.
Furthermore, of Nigeria’s 30,000 Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs), only 20% are fully functional due to inadequate funding, poorly maintained facilities, and staff shortages. The country has just 38 doctors and 165 nurses per 100,000 people, a shortage that causes medical personnel to work long hours of up to 106.5 hours per week. Medical professionals leave the country after graduation for better opportunities, benefits, and training, leaving Nigeria with a widening healthcare gap. Medical facilities also face declining infrastructure, insufficient bed space, lack of electricity and water. State governments are charged with ensuring the implementation of primary healthcare and national policies, yet many Nigerians are unable to receive basic healthcare when they need it, especially in rural areas. A 2021 NBS Survey report shows that only 36% of children were fully vaccinated, with 46% getting incomplete doses and 18% receiving none at all. Unfortunately, higher coverage was recorded in the South than in the North, with the North East and North West recording the highest numbers of unvaccinated children at 27% each.
Since 2023, state governments have consistently received higher FAAC allocations and generated more revenue, but development in key areas such as education, healthcare, and infrastructure remains slow. Before the subsidy removal, state governments frequently cited inadequate funding as a major reason for their inability to deliver their civic responsibilities; however, with increased allocations and initiatives such as the UBEC Fund, this justification warrants re-examination. If state governments are receiving more funds but development in key areas remains limited, then it raises critical questions. How are public funds being allocated and managed at the subnational level? Why is the Federal government being solely blamed without state governments being held accountable? And what does this mean for Nigerians in the 2027 polls? Ultimately, Nigerians will need to evaluate their current state governors based on how well they have carried out their constitutional duties—not just the President—and assess every aspiring candidate across all tiers of government based on the substance of their manifestos.
Challenges Facing State Governments
State governments have faced critical challenges, like every tier of government, that have hindered their ability to provide essential public services to citizens. Some of these bottlenecks include:
- Insecurity: Nigeria continues to battle terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, school abductions, communal violence, and organised crime, which have claimed over 91,000 lives since 2011. These attacks are concentrated largely in the North, affecting states like Adamawa, Kano, Kebbi, Plateau, Kwara, Kaduna, Katsina, and Zamfara. Insecurity has stunted subnational development in affected states, slowing improvements in core sectors such as education, agriculture, and healthcare. Schools have been closed due to frequent mass abductions; farmers have abandoned their farms because of security threats, contributing to disruptions in agricultural activity and development.
- Climate Disasters: Nigeria faces climate threats such as rising sea levels, increasing temperatures, severe floods, droughts, and land degradation. In 2022, floods claimed 603 lives and damaged more than 82,000 houses and affected over 300,000 hectares of land, disrupting livelihoods and economic activities in affected states. A 2023 NBS report showed that the floods negatively impacted education and healthcare services and disrupted economic and agricultural activities. Climate change therefore poses a significant challenge to subnational development and can constrain growth in key sectors such as education, healthcare, and agriculture.
- Financial Misappropriation: Corruption and the mismanagement of public funds are critical issues in Nigerian governance, affecting federal, state, and local systems. State governments have consistently received higher allocations from the FAAC since 2023 and have generated more revenue, yet subnational development remains limited, raising questions about public fund management. The EFCC disclosed that about 18 states are currently under investigation for allegations of mismanagement of public funds, while UBEC has warned states to use the ₦267 billion in previously released funds strictly for educational development. These developments raise concerns about how some states manage public funds and whether sufficient resources are being allocated to critical sectors to improve the lives of Nigerians within their jurisdictions. All tiers of government must ensure the proper allocation and management of public funds across every sector, prioritising regional growth and improving the living standards of Nigerians.
How To Evaluate Your Governorship Candidate
The 2027 polls are approaching, and Nigerians will have the opportunity to vote across presidential, governorship, and other elected offices. With increased revenues accruing to states and local governments, making the choice of candidates at this level could make a lot of difference in the provision of public goods such as education, healthcare, good roads, etc. Moreover, with the increasing drive towards providing state police, the choice of a gubernatorial candidate becomes ever more important to ensuring basic security in various states. As contestants roll out their campaigns, voters will be well advised to pay greater attention to the promises being made, in light of the amount of resources available, and the compounding costs of making the wrong decisions, or not making one at all.
The first step is to identify the specific office each candidate is vying for and the constitutional responsibilities that come with it. For example, the Lagos State governorship office carries responsibility for the administration and development of the state within powers assigned to state governments, including areas such as education, healthcare, waste management, and infrastructure, as well as the regulation of state electricity under the new Electricity Act. After identifying the responsibilities of the state governor, the next step is to evaluate each candidate's campaign and manifesto to determine whether their vision aligns with the constitutional responsibilities of the office and the specific economic and developmental needs of the state. Candidates should not be assessed solely on the basis of tribal or political affiliations, personal biases, and emotional appeals. Nigerians must look beyond sensational campaigns and properly examine every political candidate in the coming elections, focusing on their record, proposed policies, and plans for addressing the needs within their jurisdiction.
In making these decisions, the key questions should be:
- Is the candidate able to provide a clear vision of where each relevant sector could be in four years?
- What is the plan for primary and secondary education and healthcare, beyond promises?
- Is the candidate able to demonstrate a clear understanding of the challenges and potentials of the state?
If not, it might be worth considering the positions of other contestants. Suffice it to say that all Nigerians have the responsibility to not only interrogate the potential performance of presidential candidates, but also those of gubernatorial candidates, state assembly candidates, and local government officials, since the bulk of daily public goods needs (education, healthcare, local roads, etc.) are the constitutional responsibilities of the state and local government officials, not the president’s.
The evaluation process remains relevant for candidates seeking a second term in office. Nigerians must critically examine what was accomplished in the first term, and whether the administration prioritised state development and constitutional responsibilities. A candidate seeking re-election should not be evaluated solely on a new manifesto, but their existing record should be used as evidence when assessing them. After analysing each candidate's record, campaign, and manifesto against measurable indicators of development in their state, voters can make informed decisions about the candidates they wish to support.
Conclusion
Every Nigerian is entitled to good governance that prioritises the well-being of the people and development of the economy. Unfortunately, state governments continue to fall short in fulfilling their responsibilities to provide basic social services to the people. Education, healthcare, agriculture, and infrastructure are key areas of state responsibility; however, sub-national development remains fragmented across sectors. To ensure an improved standard of living for Nigerians, we must evaluate the manifestos, records, and intentions of every candidate. Nigerians have the power to decide who will be entrusted with providing these essential services, but power must be backed with knowledge. Evaluating candidates properly and holding elected officials accountable can help ensure that governance translates into better outcomes and improved living standards for Nigerians.
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