The Debt Management Office (DMO) on Friday, disclosed that Nigeria’s public debt had risen to N97.34 trillion as at the fourth quarter of 2023.
This, it said, is n increase of 10.7 per cent from N87.91 trillion recorded in the previous quarter.
The DMO, in a statement,attributed the rising debt profile to new domestic borrowing initiatives undertaken by the Federal Government, aimed at partially financing the deficit outlined in the 2024 Appropriation Act, alongside disbursements from both multilateral and bilateral lenders.
The statement read:
“Nigeria’s Public Debt Stock as at December 31, 2023 was N97.34trillion or $108.229 billion. This amount comprises the domestic and external debt stocks of the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN), the thirty-six (36) States Governments and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
“There was an increase of N9.43 trillion over the comparative figure for September, 2023 which was largely due to new domestic borrowing by the FGN to part finance the deficit in the 2024 Appropriation Act and disbursements by multilateral and bilateral lenders.”
According to the DMO, the N97.3 trillion public debt is comprised of N59.12 trillion in domestic debt and N38.22 trillion in external debt, noting that domestic borrowing, which constitutes 61 per cent of the total debt, with the remaining 39 per cent coming from external sources.
The statement further clarified the nature of Nigeria’s external debt, noting that a significant portion (63.79%) is derived from loans from multilateral and bilateral lenders.
These loans are primarily concessional or semi-concessional, in line with efforts to manage the debt burden effectively.
“Consistent with the debt management strategy, Nigeria’s external debt stock was skewed in favour of loans from multilateral (49.77 percent) and bilateral lenders (14.02 percent) or total of 63.79 percent which are mostly concessional and semi-concessional,” the DMO further revealed.
It emphasised its commitment to employing best practices in public debt management, while also acknowledging the critical role of the fiscal authorities’ ongoing efforts to increase revenue, which is essential for maintaining debt sustainability.
