The new directive, introduced by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, takes rapid impact and applies to all ongoing and subsequent payroll admission processes below the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System, IPPIS.
In an announcement signed by its Director of Press and Public Relations, Bawa Mokwa, the OAGF mentioned newly recruited workers should first be captured on the nominal roll of their respective Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, and fulfill all prescribed verification and eligibility necessities earlier than being enrolled.
The verification course of can even cowl wage buildings, grade ranges, wage steps, allowances and different monetary entitlements, as nicely as statutory particulars such as pension identification numbers, Pension Fund Administrator data, National Housing Fund registration and tax data.
According to the Federal Government, functions with incomplete documentation or unresolved discrepancies can be withheld till all necessities are met.
The directive additional requires worker data to be endorsed by the related Accounting Officer, Director of Human Resources, Director of Finance and Accounts, and designated Payroll Validating Officer earlier than last approval by the Accountant-General of the Federation.
The improvement comes amid rising authorities personnel costs.
An evaluation of the Federal Government’s first-quarter finances implementation reviews for 2025 and 2026 confirmed that personnel expenditure elevated from N1.82tn within the first quarter of 2025 to N1.96tn within the corresponding interval of 2026.
The improve of N133.94bn represents a 7.35 per cent rise.
The 2026 report additionally confirmed that personnel expenditure exceeded capital spending, which stood at N1.69tn, by roughly N267bn.
Personnel costs accounted for 20.05 per cent of the Federal Government’s whole expenditure of N9.76tn through the interval.
A breakdown confirmed that personnel spending by MDAs elevated from N1.57tn to N1.70tn, whereas Government-Owned Enterprises recorded unchanged personnel expenditure of N254.35bn.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government generated roughly N5.08tn in income in opposition to a quarterly goal of N9.22tn, representing a shortfall of 44.93 per cent.
Debt servicing additionally gulped N4.63tn, representing about 91.18 per cent of precise income.
The authorities consequently recorded a fiscal deficit of N4.69tn through the quarter.
The Budget Office mentioned measures to management recurrent expenditure included restrictions on unapproved recruitment by MDAs and necessities for prior clearance earlier than recruitment and payroll enrolment.
The newest payroll restrictions come as the Federal Government prepares to introduce a month-to-month N70,000 transport allowance for public servants from November, following discussions with the Nigeria Labour Congress.
The allowance is predicted to run for six months, though the federal government has but to disclose the variety of beneficiaries or the whole price of the intervention.
Reacting to the rising personnel expenditure, economist and Chief Executive Officer of CSA Advisory, Dr Aliyu Ilias, warned that permitting personnel costs to exceed capital expenditure may undermine funding in essential infrastructure.
He confused the necessity for the federal government to prioritize capital initiatives, significantly in schooling, healthcare and transportation, noting that social infrastructure stays important to nationwide improvement.
