2025 budget: FEC moves to review thresholds for Ministers, others

…As FEC considers 141 memos at four meetings

The Federal Executive Council (FEC), on Wednesday, announced plans to review approval thresholds for Ministerial tenders boards and other top government officials, in line with current economic realities.

Mohammed Idris, Minister of Information and National Orientation, disclosed this while briefing State House Journalists, after FEC meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu.

Idris said the plan it to reduce the number of memos on contract approvals coming to Federal Executive Council.

He disclosed that this year alone, FEC has considered and approved about 141 memos in four meetings that took place, so far, this year.

“You will notice that so many of these memos coming to council are related to procurement contracts at FEC level.

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BusinessDay gathered that the plans is also aimed at smooth implementation of the N54.99 trillion budget.

Recall that the last time the Bureau of Public Procurement BPP reviewed the threshold was in 2022.

The BPP then, placed contracts above N1.5b for works, N300m, for goods and non- consultant and consultant services to require BPP Certificate of No Objection.

The BPP also limited contracts approval for the Ministerial tenders board to those from N30m to less than N1.5b for works, between N20m and less than N300m, for goods and less than N300m for non- consultant services.

Contract approval for the Parastatal tenders board was placed between N10, but not above N100m.

Under the 2022 threshold, the Permanent Secretaries’s approval was limited to N20m, for goods, N30m for works and N20m for non- consultant services.

The BPP also limited the power of the Director General/CEO to N20m for works, and N10m for other contracts.

Idris stated that FEC thought that it is good to review the threshold, “so that more time will be given to policy discussions at different Executive Council.

” In other words, increasing the threshold for ministers and other MDS to execute contracts or procurements at their ministerial, departmental levels, agencies level.”

Idris who noted that the idea was still under consideration, added that ” it is not yet conclusive what the final decisions are, but there is a very fruitful debate led by the chairman of Council, Mr President himself, to review that so that we can have more time for policy discussions at the Federal Executive Council meetings.

He disclosed that the Director-General of the BPP and other ministers have been asked to work on that, and report will be given to the Federal Executive Council for final approval by by Mr President very soon. We thought that we should just let you know that.

“If you observed, all the memos presented here, largely related to procurements and so we want that to be decongested at the Federal Executive Council level, to give room for more detailed discussions on policy issues and reduce some of these memos coming by increasing the threshold of those procurement processes to be executed at the ministerial level.