•UNICEF, DAWN Commission, NLC commend Oyo, as engagement on 2026 budget begins
The governor of Oyo State, ‘Seyi Makinde, has said that his administration will continue to consult and engage with residents of the state on the making of the state annual budgets, with a view to knowing their aspirations and prioritising their needs.
The governor stated this on Thursday, October 9, while speaking at the Stakeholders’ Consultative and Engagement Meeting on the 2026 Budget, held at the Ogunlana Hall, International Conference Centre, University of Ibadan.
This was as the UNICEF, the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission and the leaders of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), among others commended Governor Makinde for running a people-oriented government and transforming the state across different sectors.
In his remarks, the governor maintained that the stakeholders’ engagement is to enable the government to serve the residents of the state better through a bottom-up approach to development, noting that his administration began the tradition in 2019.
According to him, his government first separated the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning from the Ministry of Finance in order to ensure a better management of the state’s resources and to avoid discrepancies, stating that the stakeholders’ engagement has resulted into better budget performances and economic development of the state.
The governor reiterated that his government will continue to serve the interests of the people of the state by putting in place institutions that will ensure that the environment is safe and ready to attract investments.
He added that the state is growing rapidly and that this development has stopped rural-urban migration, with the constructions of Moniya-Iseyin Road, Iseyin-Ogbomoso Road, Oyo-Iseyin Road, among other infrastructural projects, which have opened rural communities.
He said: “This is the 7th in our Stakeholders’ Engagement series. We all have to work together to ensure there is no break in that cycle.
“There is something very important that I must say. I want to first of all appreciate our Economic Team for its consistency. We have seen the benefit of decoupling the Ministry of Finance, Budget and Economic Planning.
“I have said it many times that we are not going to be judged by how many kilometres of road we have constructed or how many schools we have built or other infrastructure but we think we will be judged by the institutions we are creating.
“In Oyo State, we are moving in the right direction as far as the institutions that we are creating and that is what will define this administration.
“I have listened to some of the issues raised here. Coming here every year is not for joking or trying to fulfil all righteousness but because we want to hear from the people. We want to listen to you.
“I remember in 2019, our first full budget. The budget we met in May 2019 was the budget from the previous administration and we reduced it by shaving off almost N180 billion from that budget. About this time in 2019, we had our own first budget.
“So, we decided to hear from the people, hear from them to know their aspirations for their government and I am glad that seven years on, there has been no regret because the people have taken ownership of their own budget. So, we will continue to try our best.”
Speaking on the politics of 2027, Governor Makinde, who declared that the people of the state would not fall for sloganeering but would ask all the right questions, said he would, at the appropriate time, suggest a candidate from his team, while the people of the state will be in charge of making a decision on who will build on the roadmap for sustainable development beyond 2027.
“If we put anybody forward in our team, what it means is that we have evaluated that individual. It wouldn’t be about the individual per se. If within the team, we have a roadmap for continued development of Oyo State 2027 and beyond and we have people within that team that have already bought into it, that would be the best path forward.
“Having said that, the decision on who would be the next governor rests with the people of Oyo State. We will make our own submission to the people, because Oyo State has gone beyond stunt politics. Maybe it used to happen in the past. Now, Oyo State people will ask you questions,” the governor declared.
The governor urged residents of the state to take the stakeholders’ engagement meetings, which would be held across the seven zones of the state, seriously, as their inputs from the meetings would be captured in the budget preparation.
While responding to some of the issues raised by stakeholders at the forum, including the implementation of N32,000 minimum wage for pensioners, the governor assured that his administration would capture the full implementation in the 2026 budget so as to keep supporting the pensioners in the state to live long.
He also mentioned that he had signed off on reformation of two technical colleges so that artisans and youths can have qualified certificates for vocational training, while he also assured that several road projects, including the construction of Iwo road to Osun State boundary would continue.
The governor equally assured that the government would provide a safety net for residents of the state, especially women, in 2026.
Commenting on the position of the Federal Government that state governments have received more resources, the governor said, “Let me also say that the Federal Government made a statement trying to demonise the governors, telling the people that the governors have more money. What is the purchasing power parity? What we have tried to do in Oyo State is to ensure that the government is able to provide an environment where businesses can thrive.”
Earlier in his welcome address, the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Prof Musibau Babatunde, said the state government had been using the stakeholders’ meetings to influence its budgets since 2019 through a bottom-up approach that has made the state’s budgeting inclusive for effective implementation of projects.
He noted that the Agenda 2040 and the Oyo State Roadmap for Sustainable Development 2023-2027 are guides that also represent the top-down approach for the government to engage the people for a better economic development of the state through science, logic and data.
Babatunde added that the stakeholders’ engagement forum has enhanced the budget performance, with 71.5 per cent in 2024 and 80.86 percent revenue performance and 68.9 percent expenditure performance pro-rata for the 2025 budget between January and June 2025.
In their separate goodwill messages, Director-General of the DAWN Commission, Mr. Seye Oyeleye; chairman of the House Committee on Budget, Public Accounts, Finance and Appropriation, Hon Sunkanmi Babalola; and representative of the chairmen of Local Government Areas in Ibadan Main City, Alhaji Ramoni Adepoju, lauded the governor for the massive transformation of the state.
Others who commended the governor include the representative of UNICEF, Mr Mohammed Okori; the representative of JDPC, Mr Jide Bamgbose and leaders of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in the South-West, with all of them appreciating the governor for being a visionary leader and for running an inclusive government.
The UNICEF representative said Oyo State Government on Makinde’s watch has been proactive and accountable, which is why UNICEF has focused on it, adding that development partners do not take their resources to where they will not find traction.
He noted that the Fund will continue to support Oyo State.
The chairman of the NLC in the state, Comrade Kayode Martins, equally commended the governor for what he has done for workers in the state.
The event had in attendance a former Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Engr. Hamid Gbadamosi; former Deputy Governor and PDP Deputy National Chairman (South), Ambassador Taofeek Arapaja; Chief Judge of Oyo State, Justice Iyabo Yerima, represented by Justice A.L Akintola; Secretary to the State Government, Prof Olanike Adeyemo; Chief of Staff, Otunba Segun Ogunwuyi and the Head of Service, Mrs Olubunmi Oni, mni.
Also in attendance were the Deputy Chief of Staff, Hon Kazeem Adeniyi; PDP South-West Women Leader, Chief (Mrs) Bosede Adedibu; chairman of all Local Government Chairmen in Oyo State, Hon Sikiru Sanda; other top government functionaries, traditional rulers, religious leaders, labour leaders, civil society organisations, youth groups and traders, among others.
