Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo State on Tuesday presented the 2026 budget estimate of N939,850billion to the State House of Assembly.

DAILY POST reports that the budget was tagged ‘Budget of Hope and Growth’.

Okpebholo said the budget is over N140.03 billion higher than the 2025 budget of N799,820,058,858,52 billion.

According to him, the sum of N637 billion, representing 68 percent, is allocated to capital expenditure while N302 billion, representing 32 percent, is for recurrent expenditure.

He explained the 2026 budget estimate seeks to consolidate on the gains recorded in his first year in office, expanding the government’s reach, and restoring the hope of Edo people in governance.

“The 2026 Budget of Hope and Growth is designed to build on the foundation we laid in 2025. It is a budget that speaks to the needs of our people. It focuses on security, infrastructure, agriculture, education, job creation and healthcare.

“Edo State will continue to prioritize capital projects such as roads, schools, hospitals, water, housing, and economic projects. Our people want real development they can see and feel,” Okpebholo said.

The governor said the budget would be funded through Internally Generated Revenue of N160 billion, Federal Account Allocation Committee, FAAC, of N480 billion, Capital Receipts and Grants of N153 billion, Public-Private Partnerships of N146 billion and other revenue windows available to the state.

While noting that his administration would not impose unnecessary financial pressure on citizens, the governor assured that instead the government would strengthen systems and block leakages.

The sectoral breakdown allocations indicated that the economic sector has the lion share of N614.2 billion, followed by the administration sector with N157.7billion, and the social sector with N148.9 billion.

Okpebholo posited that the budget is built on the SHINE Agenda of the government which has five pillars – Security, Health, Infrastructure, Natural Resources/Agriculture and Education.

He added that the vision of the 2026 budget is to bring about prosperity and a united Edo State where every citizen has hope and every community feels the impact of governance.