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The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has begun moving its sub-national fiscal survey from manual data collection to a digital platform covering the country’s 36 states, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and local government areas.
The initiative aims to improve how the apex bank collects, validates and processes financial information from state and local governments, providing more reliable data for economic analysis, fiscal monitoring and policy decisions.
The digitalisation programme targets the State and Local Government Fiscal Operations Survey, which gathers information about government revenue, expenditure, borrowing, debt and other fiscal activities. The data helps the CBN assess public finance conditions across different levels of government.
Under the previous manual process, government institutions submitted fiscal information through paper-based questionnaires and other reporting procedures. The approach created challenges involving incomplete submissions, reporting delays, data inconsistencies and the difficulty of validating information received from numerous government offices.
The CBN’s Statistics Department is leading the transition and has organised stakeholder engagement and practical training sessions across different states to prepare government officials for the new reporting system.
During an engagement in Edo State, CBN officials explained that the digital platform would support faster data submission, automated validation and improved monitoring. The system is also expected to reduce the administrative costs associated with collecting and processing fiscal information.
The bank has emphasised that digitalisation involves more than replacing paper questionnaires with electronic forms. It also seeks to improve the accuracy, integrity, continuity and accessibility of fiscal statistics generated by state and local governments.
In Rivers State, the CBN organised a training programme for fiscal stakeholders on the transition to digital reporting. Officials explained that the platform would enable government institutions to transmit information to end-users in real time, reduce reporting delays and improve the quality of submitted figures.
The training also highlighted the importance of proper classification and presentation of financial information. Accurate reporting is essential because errors or incomplete records can affect the quality of fiscal analysis and the decisions that depend on it.
Similar engagements have taken place in Abia and Anambra states. In Abia, representatives of the state government and its 17 local government areas received sensitisation and practical training on the digital survey platform. Anambra also trained officials from its 21 local government areas on the new digital questionnaire.
The CBN expects the new system to strengthen collaboration between the apex bank and sub-national governments. State and local government officials will need to provide accurate and timely information to ensure that the platform produces dependable fiscal statistics.
Reliable sub-national data is important for understanding how governments generate revenue, manage expenditure and finance development projects. It can also help identify changes in borrowing levels, fiscal pressures and public financial management practices across different parts of Nigeria.
For policymakers, the wider availability of timely fiscal information can support economic planning and improve the assessment of government finances. It also provides a stronger statistical foundation for monitoring developments beyond the Federal Government’s budget and accounts.
However, the effectiveness of the digital system will depend on the quality of information supplied by participating institutions, the technical capacity of government officials and consistent use of the platform. Digital submission alone cannot guarantee accurate figures if the underlying financial records are incomplete or incorrectly prepared.
The CBN’s ongoing stakeholder engagements are therefore intended to familiarise officials with the platform and address practical difficulties before the digital process becomes fully established across the country.
The nationwide initiative represents a change in how Nigeria gathers and manages fiscal information from its sub-national governments. By replacing manual reporting with a digital process, the apex bank aims to make fiscal data collection more efficient and strengthen the information available for economic monitoring and policy formulation.
