Nigeria’s total public debt hits N46.25trn

Nigeria’s total public debt stock, consisting of the domestic and external debt stocks of the Federal Government, 36 state governments and the Federal Capital Territory was N46.25 trillion (USD103.11 billion) at the end of December 2022.

This is a 14.46 percent increase compared to N39.56 trillion (USD95.77 billion) recorded on December 31, 2021.

According to a statement issued by the Debt Management Office on Thursday, in terms of composition, total domestic debt stock was N27.55 trillion (USD 61.42 billion) while total external debt stock was N18.70 trillion (USD 41.69 billion).

Amongst the reasons for the increase in the total public debt stock were new borrowings by the FGN and sub-national governments, primarily to fund Budget Deficits and execute projects.

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“The issuance of Promissory Notes by the FGN to settle some liabilities also contributed to the growth in the Debt Stock.

“On-going efforts by the Government to increase revenues from oil and non-oil sources through initiatives such as the Finance Acts and the Strategic Revenue Mobilization initiative are expected to support debt sustainability, ” it read.

The statement showed that the total public debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio for December 31, 2022, was 23.20 percent and indicates a slight increase from the figure for December 31, 2022, at 22.47 percent.

“The ratio of 23.20 percent is within the 40 percent limit self-imposed by Nigeria, the 55 percent limit recommended by the World Bank/International Monetary Fund, and the 70 percent limit recommended by the Economic Community of West African States,”it stated.