The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, on Friday disclosed that a forensic audit of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, is ongoing as part of efforts to scrutinise oil revenue deductions and boost remittances into the Federation Account.

Mr Edun made the disclosure during a press conference in Abuja, where he briefed stakeholders on recent developments in the Nigerian economy.

“It is an ongoing forensic audit of NNPC as mandated by the Federation Account Allocation Committee meeting. That is ongoing,” the minister said.

He explained that the audit is being conducted alongside the implementation of a new presidential executive order directing that specific oil and gas revenues be paid directly into the Federation Account.

According to him, the review is examining various deductions and charges that reduce the amounts ultimately accruing to the Federal Government, states and local governments.

Mr Edun noted that the Federal Executive Council had earlier mandated a subcommittee to scrutinise deductions from the Federation Account, particularly the cost of collection and the charges applied in administering those deductions.

“It’s within that context of looking at what should come into the Federation Account and what was going elsewhere that we have now been directed by Mr President, as owner of the executive order, to immediately flow these three elements — management fee, frontier fund, as well as the gas flare penalty — directly to the Federation Account,” he said.

The minister stressed that the directive does not override any ongoing legislative or institutional processes.

“It does not prejudice anything else that is ongoing, whether at the National Assembly or the legislature or any other action that is looking at this all-important area of the Federation Account — the accuracy, the transparency, and the accountability of the funds that are going to flow into it,” he stated.

He further disclosed that a committee comprising federal and state representatives has been constituted to ensure efficient implementation of the directive and is scheduled to meet next week.

Mr Edun expressed optimism that the combined effect of the executive order and the forensic audit would bring clarity to the long-debated issue of alleged remittance backlogs.

Linking the development to broader fiscal reforms, the minister said Nigeria must intensify domestic resource mobilisation amid elevated global interest rates and shrinking fiscal space.

“Within that context, there is a need to focus on domestic resource mobilisation, rather than debt financing that is not self-liquidating,” he said, warning that rising debt service obligations continue to crowd out critical spending on health, education and infrastructure.

On revenue transparency, Mr Edun added that the government is deploying technology across ministries, departments and agencies to block leakages and strengthen accountability in public finance management.

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