The National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) is preparing for a busy fiscal year 2025, with 19 new projects scheduled for implementation.
This initiative aligns with the agency's mandate to effectively manage and mitigate oil spill incidents nationwide.¹
Under federal government directives, NOSDRA is tasked with addressing the challenges associated with oil spills, from detection to cleanup. To deliver on this mission, the agency has proposed a budget of £10,410,007,081 by 2025, with more than 50% of this allocation going to capital projects.
Findings by the Nigerian Tribune revealed that NOSDRA has identified 19 new projects with an expected expenditure of £583,976,856.
However, it is important to note that the federal government has ordered all ministries, departments and agencies to exclude new projects from their 2025 budget submissions, unless they are linked to the completion of ongoing initiatives.
At the top of NOSDRA's planned spending is a £60,000,000 project for the “Community Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Programme”.
The agency has also allocated ₦50,000,000 for the amendment of the NOSDRA Act through an amendment bill. The project, coded ERGP19229512, is described in the 2025 budget as “NOSDRA (Strategy/Planning) Amendment Bill, New” and represents approximately 5% of the agency's project capital spending.
A budget of ₦45,381,280 has been proposed for the review and activation of the National Oil Spill Contingency Plan (NOSCP). In addition, £50,000,000 has been allocated to fully automate the accreditation and certification processes.
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The Nigerian Tribune has also noted that NOSDRA is taking proactive steps to improve its efficiency in tax collection by introducing “new automatic tax collection and payment software.” The agency has proposed £30,000,000 for this intangible asset, which aims to improve its efficiency in raising revenue on behalf of the federal government.
For the “development of oil spill response policies and guidelines”, NOSDRA has allocated ₦31,595,575 to strengthen its response and management of spill incidents across the country.
To ensure that Nigerian taxpayers receive value for money, the agency has allocated £20,000,000 to monitor and evaluate the expenditure of £583,976,856 on capital projects in fiscal year 2025, pending approval.