0
0
The federal government has warned ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) that failure to prepare and submit their statements of accounts to the treasury by December 31, 2025, will attract sanctions, including suspension of funds.
The directive was issued in a circular dated December 22, 2025, signed by the Accountant-General of the Federation, Shamseldeen Ogunjimi.
According to the circular, any MDA that fails to prepare and submit its annual financial statements will have its release of funds suspended indefinitely and may face administrative consequences at the leadership level.
“Any MDA that fails to prepare and render its separate (stand-alone) annual financial statements will have its release of funds suspended indefinitely, while a query shall be issued to the director/head of accounts and administration,” Ogunjimi stated.
Titled “Guidelines of Financial Activities for End of the Year 2025,” the circular directs all MDAs to ensure that all revenues due to the Federation Account and the Consolidated Revenue Fund/TSA Sub-Recurrent Account are fully collected and properly accounted for before year-end.
MDAs authorised to retain 50 per cent of their internally generated revenue (IGR) are instructed to remit the remaining 50 per cent to the TSA Sub-Recurrent Account, in line with the finance circular of December 28, 2023.
Ogunjimi emphasized that MDAs must exercise due diligence in the collection, utilisation, and remittance of revenue, in accordance with circular reference FMF/CME/OTHERS/IGR/CFR/21/2023. He also directed that reports on IGR collection, utilisation, and remittance be uploaded on the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) to ensure complete and accurate accounting records.
Regarding operating surpluses, the Accountant-General instructed all corporations, departments, and agencies listed under the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007, as revised in the December 2023 circular, to limit total budgetary expenditure to 50 per cent of gross revenue and remit 80 per cent of the remaining 50 per cent into the TSA Sub-Recurrent Account as interim or advance payment of operating surplus.
The federal government has consistently maintained that unspent funds must be returned to the treasury at the end of each accounting year, although compliance among MDAs has been uneven.
Earlier reports from the Fiscal Responsibility Commission indicated that more than ₦5 trillion in operating surpluses was remitted between 2007 and 2024, while over ₦1.5 trillion was reportedly lost due to non-remittance of the required 80 per cent by some agencies.
Separately, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, warned MDAs that non-compliance with the revised cash planning policy could lead to blocking of their capital funds, stressing the need for strict adherence to improve discipline in public financial management.
In July, the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation introduced additional financial control measures following a “surge in unretired advances and idle cash balances” across several MDAs. Agencies were instructed to submit comprehensive annual reports on unretired advances, with violations potentially leading to withdrawal of imprest privileges or other sanctions.
The latest directive underscores the treasury’s renewed push for stricter accountability as the 2025 financial year ends, linking continued access to government funds with full compliance in reporting, remittance, and expenditure management
