The Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, has appealed to the Senate to increase the N134.2 billion proposed for the ministry in the 2026 fiscal year.

The minister said an upward review would enable the ministry to implement programmes aimed at addressing the multifaceted challenges facing women across the country.

Meanwhile, the Senate, through its Committee on Women Affairs, expressed concern over what it described as abysmally poor cash releases for the ministry’s capital and overhead components in the 2025 budget.

Sulaiman-Ibrahim made the call on Monday during a budget defence session with the Senate Committee on Women Affairs, stressing the need for increased domestic allocations in 2026.

“In line with the plan and the need for more domestic allocations in the 2026 fiscal year, an upward review of budget estimates for the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development should be done,” she said.

In her remarks, Committee Chairperson, Ireti Kingibe, welcomed the request but emphasised that poor fund releases must first be addressed by the executive.

“We are not against an upward review of what is earmarked for your ministry in 2026, but the problem of abysmal releases of funds, as reflected in your presentation on the 2025 budget appropriation and releases, is a serious concern to us. That problem must be addressed first,” she said.

Earlier, while presenting the ministry’s 2025 budget performance and 2026 projections, the minister disclosed that out of the N89.8 billion appropriated for capital expenditure in 2025, only N394 million was released in December and was not utilised. She added that only N471 million was released from the N2.8 billion appropriated for overhead costs.

For 2026, the ministry has a proposed budget of N134.2 billion, comprising N2.1 billion for personnel costs, N131.2 billion for capital expenditure, and N810.9 million for overhead.