The Debt Management Office (DMO) reports that Nigeria’s overall public debt has risen to N121.67 trillion in just three months.
This value is a growth of N24.33 trillion, or 24.99 per cent, from N97.34 trillion in December 2023.
Nigeria’s public debt profile is made up of domestic and external debt stocks held by the federal and subnational governments, which include 36 states and the federal capital territory.
According to the DMO,
“The increase was principally caused by the federal government’s additional domestic borrowing to partially pay the deficit in the 2024 budget, as well as disbursements from multilateral and bilateral lenders.
“Total domestic debt was N65.65 trillion (USD46.29 billion) while total external debt was N56.02 trillion (USD42.12 billion).
“Excluding naira exchange rate movements in Q1 2024, only the domestic debt component of total public debt grew from N59.12 trillion on December 31, 2023, to N65.65 trillion on March 31, 2024.
“The increase was from new borrowing to part-finance the 2024 Budget deficit and securitization of a portion of the N7.3 trillion Ways and Means Advances at the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“Whilst borrowing, as provided in the 2024 Appropriation Act, will continue, we expect improvements in the government’s revenue to enhance debt sustainability.”
On June 13, Wale Edun, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, said that the World Bank had approved two substantial “financial support packages” totalling $2.25 billion.
In May, the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) announced that the federal government had acquired a $500 million World Bank loan to expand energy distribution in the country.
Before this, the World Bank provided the federal government with $750 million for humanitarian and social reforms, as well as $1.5 billion for its economic stabilisation strategy.