President Bola Tinubu has received the proposed 2027 United Nations budget from Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Jimoh Ibrahim, in what has been described as a historic first in the country’s 66-year relationship with the organisation.

Ibrahim, who chairs the UN General Assembly’s Fifth Committee responsible for administrative and budgetary matters, presented the seven-volume document to the President at the State House, Abuja.

Speaking to journalists after the presentation, the ambassador said it was the first time in 66 years that a Nigerian president had received the proposed UN budget through the process.

He explained that the document was submitted to Nigeria because the country is a member of the United Nations and he represents it on the committee responsible for examining the organisation’s budget.

Ibrahim said the proposed budget covers the UN’s regular operations and peacekeeping activities, with approximately 3.4 billion dollars earmarked for the regular budget and 8.5 billion dollars for peacekeeping operations.

Although he put the total proposed budget at about 14 billion dollars, the two components he cited add up to 11.9 billion dollars.

The ambassador clarified that the budget was still at the proposal stage and would undergo further discussions and possible adjustments before final approval by UN member states.

He said spending would commence only after the budget had been formally approved.Ibrahim also declined to specify the benefits Nigeria might receive from the proposed budget, noting that discussions on its contents were ongoing.

He, however, cited the construction of a 267-million-dollar United Nations conference centre in Kenya as an example of the organisation’s investment in facilities within member states.

The proposed 2027 budget will now undergo further scrutiny before member states reach a final decision on the figures and approve the commencement of spending.