MDAs Allocate Billions For Stationeries Despite Paperless Operation

Despite the recent launch of paperless operations by the Federal Government through the Head of Civil Service of the Federation, many ministries, departments and agencies allocated huge sums of money running into billions of naira for office stationeries, analysis of the 2026 budget has shown.

No fewer than 12 Ministries analysed by Daily Trust allocated over N1.5bn for stationeries in their 2026 budget proposal.

The item was captured under the heading, “Office Stationeries/Computer Consumables” while some items were simply captured as office stationery.

Daily Trust reports that office stationeries have become some of the extraneous items in Nigeria’s annual budget.

With the automation of civil service operations, many had thought the office stationeries as an item in the budget would drastically reduce.

However, checks by our correspondent indicated that office stationeries appeared 783 times in the 2026 Appropriation Bill. This is different from ‘stationery’ as another line item which appeared twice with an agency of the federal government, the Federal Cooperative College, Ibadan, proposing to spend N126 million on ICT Computers, Office Stationery and Consumables.

Civil service automation

Daily Trust reports that the Federal Government had announced that all federal ministries have transitioned to a fully paperless mode of operation, marking a major shift in how official business is conducted across the civil service.

The declaration was made by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HCSF), Didi Walson-Jack on December 30, 2025, saying every ministry has been fully digitalised and will no longer require paper for government transactions.

Walson-Jack disclosed that more than 100,000 email accounts have been created for civil servants on the GovMail platform.

She explained that all federal workers now operate with official government email addresses, ensuring secure, professional and auditable communication across the service.

She stated that going forward, federal ministries will no longer process paper correspondence, noting that only scanned documents sent through designated official email addresses will be accepted.

According to the HCSF, the digital transformation now covers 38 Ministries and Extra-Ministerial Departments (MEMDs), made up of 33 ministries and five extra-ministerial bodies. These include the State House, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, the Federal Civil Service Commission, and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.

Walson-Jack said, “This strengthens sovereignty over official correspondence, enhances responsiveness across MDAs, and reduces reliance on unofficial communication channels.

“Additionally, GovMail is saving the Federal Government billions of Naira annually by reducing dependence on fragmented, agency-specific external email subscriptions and licenses, delivering better value-for-money.

“Engagements are ongoing with telecommunications providers to make online access more affordable for Ministries and Extra-Ministerial Departments and to enhance the reliability of connectivity needed for digital workflows.

“At the same time, a sustainable pricing model is being created to keep digitalisation platforms affordable, scalable, and maintainable over the long term, ensuring service continuity and value-for-money for the government.

“To consolidate these gains and end the culture of paper-based bureaucracy, the 38 Federal Ministries and Extra-Ministerial Departments will no longer accept paper submissions through their physical registries.”

However, despite the paperless launch, the MDAs continue to allocate huge resources for stationeries.

For instance, the Federal Ministry of Youth Development proposed to spend N356.2 million on office stationeries and computer consumables. Also, Ministry of Petroleum Resources would spend N336.81m on the same item.

Also, the Federal Ministry of Finance budgets N169 million on office stationeries; Federal Ministry of Works, N70 million and Federal Ministry of Power would spend N40m.

The Federal Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development proposed to spend N71.94million on office stationeries and computer consumables; Federal Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation budgets N70m for the same item; Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment would spend N72.3m while the Federal Ministry of Environment plans to spend N105.500million.

Also, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security would spend N67.2m; Federal Ministry of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs would spend N35.5m while the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy proposed N45.9m on the item.

On the part of the departments and agencies of government, virtually all the agencies allocated money for office stationeries and computer consumables.

The Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) and the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) proposed to spend a whooping  N600m and N438.71million on office stationeries and computer consumables respectively; the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) would spend would N472.30million; Office of Accountant General of the federation would spend N131.69million.

Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) would spend N315.15m on office stationeries and computer consumables while the Federal Road Safety Commission would spend N230million.

Also, the National Boundary Commission proposed N162.4million on the line item; Debt Management Office allocates N60million; the National Population Commission (NPC) would spend 75.080million while the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN) would spend N85.3million. (Daily trust)