From Uche Usim, Abuja
The Debt Management Office (DMO) on Thursday said that Nigeria’s total debt stock, as at December 31, 2022, currently stands at N46.25 trillion or $103.11 billion. The comparative figure for December 31, 2021, is N39.56 trillion or $95.77 billion.
The latest total public debt stock consists of the domestic and external debt stocks of the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) and the sub-national governments 36 State Governments and the Federal Capital Territory. In terms of composition, total domestic debt stock was N27.55 trillion ($61.42 billion) while total external debt stock was N18.70 trillion $41.69 billion.
According to DMO, among the reasons for the increase in Nigeria’s total debt stock were new borrowings by the Federal Government of Nigeria and sub-national governments, primarily to fund budget deficits and execute projects.
It added that 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.
“Meanwhile, the total public debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio for December 31, 2022, was 23.20% and indicates a slight increase from the figure for December 31, 2022, at 22.47%. The ratio of 23.20% is within the 40% limit self-imposed by Nigeria, the 55% limit recommended by the World Bank/International Monetary Fund, and the 70% limit recommended by the Economic Community of West African States”, the DMO explained in a statement. In February, the DMO clarified that N1 trillion has thus far been spent on debt financing this year out of N2.129 trillion that was raised in January and February from issuances of FGN Bonds, Nigerian Treasury Bills and FGN Savings Bonds.