INTRODUCTION
Budget is a vital instrument of governance in any modern state. It exercises control over size and relationship of government receipts (revenue) and expenditures (payment) (Edame, 2010). These expenditures comprises of recurrent expenditures, capital expenditures, subsidies, debt servicing and so on. These expenditures often have significant impact on the economy. Ohanele (2010) further stressed that a well-functioning budget system is vital for the formulation of sustainable fiscal policy and the facilitation of economic growth. In a bid to achieve the macroeconomic goals and objectives of stable and full employment, infrastructural development among others, the national government initiates several types of budget such as surplus, balanced, deficit, supplementary, development budget; and also include the line item or traditional budgeting system, performance budgeting system, planning budgeting system, programming schools and so on),the provision of employment opportunities, the reduction of poverty, and the supply of transport, health, and educational facilities. Hence this study analyzed impact of budget implementation on economic growth in Nigeria. The size and structure of public expenditure (both recurrent and capital expenditure)is expected to boost the growth in output of the economy. The level of budget implementation in Nigeria since the advent of democracy in 2014 has been low and that there has been wide disparity between budgeted capital expenditures and actual capital expenditures.This above assertion is true but the fact is that the problem with budget is traceable to as far back as 1986 (SAP period), this has been a recurring problem.A budget provides a framework for revenue and expenditure outlays over a specified period usually one year (Olurankise (2012)). It is an instrument stipulating policies and programmes aimed at realizing the development objectives of a government. According to Meigs, (2013) budgets is a financial plan, setting forth the expected route for achieving the financial and operational goals of an organization”. Budget is being described by Omolehinwa (2010) as the plan of major individuals in an organization expressed in monetary terms and subject to the constraints imposed by other participants and the environment showing how the resources may be properly utilized to achieve what the major individual agreed to be the organization’s proprieties”.Recently, there have been a lot of controversies in Nigeria concerningbudgeting as to the modality for preparation and administration in the country due to continuous change in government and consequential change in policy and ideology. Especially with the understanding that a greater percentage of the country’s population has gotten, this has made them advocate the need to review the size of governance in Nigeria in order to push up the provisions available for more necessary projects. The controversy over the oil benchmark that has hindered the national assembly from the passage of the 2013 budget due to dispute over the price that must be used for budgeting purposes. It is important to state here that implementation cannot be discussed without appropriate planning and reassessing coupled with proper monitoring to facilitate it efficient implementation. The problem of budgeting in Nigeriais both in the aspect of preparation and implementation, hence, the need for adequate control aimed at improving effective resources utilization at the budget implementation stage. Fiscal policy is a primary instrument that can be used to reduce short-run fluctuations in output and employment. Meanwhile, there are macroeconomic issues such as high unemployment, inadequate national savings, excessive budget deficits, and large public debt burdens, fiscal policy has been acknowledged to hold center stage in policy debate in Nigerian economy. During the economic recession of the 1930s, the government sectors of both developed and developing economies played a vital role in stimulating economic growth and development. During that time, every economy attempted to promote its economic growth through increasing government expenditures and reducing taxes. Public expenditure is a key instrument that influences the sustainability of public finances via effects on Developing Country Studies fiscal balances and government debt. Budget is majorly seen from the aspect of shrink the target income, in contrast to the tendency to raise the expenditure budget target. This phenomenon helps to explain that the target revenue would be diminished if the area shows achievement in its realization. In Nigeria, the ministries and spending agencies of the government cannot incur an obligation to make expenditures; they must secure spending authorization from the Ministry of Finance through the use of warrants. This warrant will authorize officers controlling votes to incur expenditure in accordance with the approved estimates subject to any reserved items. If the Appropriation Act has not come into operation at the beginning of the year, a provisional General Warrant may be issued to ensure continuity of the services of government at a level not higher than those of the previous year. The duration of spending authorization is determined in functional cash flow forecast for the period when payments are anticipated.There are many possibilities for interventions and manipulations in view of the fact that officials have a great amount of discretionary power to agree or decide which spending ministry or agency will be granted authorization of spending during budget implementation. Despite the specific nature of appropriation laws, the commitment phase of the expenditure process is a fertile ground for corrupt activities. Budget process in Nigeria includes budget preparation by the executive, legislative approval and implementation by the different ministry, and departments of the government.
The annual public sector budget of both the federal and sub-national governments is a key to the development process of the country. Both as an instrument of policy and as a vehicle for channeling resources to specific development projects and programmes, the potential of the budget to influence development is enormous. The performance of a budget, therefore, depends on the extent to which it can give expression to these determinants. The following are very critical to giving this expression; the budget should be consistent and reflect policy priorities, resource availability, and implementation capacity; there should be monitoring of budget implementation and reallocation of resources where necessary to ensure they are used efficiently, there should be the existence of a culture of transparency and accountability in the use of resources. Unfortunately, even with the introduction of budget reforms, budget implementation at the federal and state government levels has basically been a carryover from the military regimes characterized by the absence of a clear linkage between policy, plan and budget, with the legal framework for the authorization and compliance with fiscal responsibility expected of a budget patently weak. Put succinctly, the policies and plans of government (both federal and state) hardly have practical expression in the budget, thus giving room for flagrant fiscal indiscipline and mismanagement of resources.
The major aim of the study is to examine budget implementation and economic growth in Nigeria. Other specific objectives of the study include;
1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
Hypothesis 1
H0: There is no significant impactof budget implementation on economic growth in Nigeria.
H1: There is a significant impact of budget implementation on economic growth in Nigeria.
Hypothesis 2
H0: There is no significant relationship between budget implementation and economic growth in Nigeria.
H1: There is a significant relationship between budget implementation and economic growth in Nigeria
The study would be of benefit towards enhancement of budget implementation which will foster economic growth in Nigeria. The study would also be of immense benefit to students, researchers and scholars who are interested in developing further studies on the subject matter
The study is restricted budget implementation and economic growth in Nigeria (2014-2017).
LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
Financial constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview)
Time constraint: The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.
Budget: - A budget is a formal statement of estimated future income, financial and/or qualitative statement prepared and approved prior to a defined period for the purpose of attaining a given objective. It may include income, expenditure and employment of capital (ICMA)
Economic growth: is the increase in the inflation-adjusted market value of the goods and services produced by an economy over time. It is conventionally measured as the percent rate of increase in real gross domestic product or real GDP
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