The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has launched an initiative to digitalise its Sub-National Fiscal Survey across the 36 states, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and all 774 local government areas to strengthen Nigeria’s economic data architecture.
Driven by the apex bank’s Statistics Department, the project transitions sub-national reporting from manual submissions to a digital framework aimed at improving the speed, accuracy, and consistency of fiscal data used for monetary and economic decision-making.
Modernising Sub-National Fiscal Tracking
Speaking at the Sub-National Fiscal Statistics Stakeholders’ engagement in Abeokuta, Ogun State, the Director of the Statistics Department, Dr. Usman Moses Okpanachi, emphasized that accurate sub-national fiscal data is essential for assessing revenue performance, expenditure patterns, and public-sector liquidity.
Okpanachi noted that the traditional twice-yearly manual survey faced persistent challenges, including validation delays, processing bottlenecks, and logistical constraints.
”Digitalisation will standardise data entry, improve validation, simplify submissions, enable better monitoring, and support our transition toward a more frequent and sustainable quarterly rendition of returns.”
— Dr. Usman Moses Okpanachi, Director, CBN Statistics Department
He added that reliable sub-national reporting is critical as the CBN shifts toward a forward-looking, data-dependent monetary policy framework and a more explicit inflation-targeting regime.
Key Objectives of the Digitalisation Project
Standardised Reporting: Automates data capture across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) and local councils to reduce human error.
Enhanced Frequency: Prepares sub-national institutions to transition from bi-annual reporting to structured quarterly returns.
Institutional Continuity: Requires state and local governments to appoint designated focal officers for data validation, reconciliation, and prompt submission.
Traceable Corrections: Implements built-in verification mechanisms to track data adjustments and maintain audit trails.
Implementation Schedule and Progress
The nationwide stakeholder engagement and training exercise officially commenced on October 26, 2026. Practical workshops are designed to train fiscal officers on navigating the digital questionnaire, managing verification rules, and submitting returns via the new platform.
