The total public debt stock of Nigeria surged by N57.3 trillion during the initial 18 months of the current administration, based on an analysis of figures published by the Debt Management Office (DMO).
This jump signifies a 65.6 per cent increase in national debt, growing from N87.38 trillion recorded as of June 2023 to N144.67 trillion by the end of December 2024.
President Bola Tinubu, who assumed office on May 29, 2023, inherited a debt structure heavily weighted with domestic obligations, notably the N22.7 trillion Ways and Means advances owed to the Central Bank of Nigeria. However, over the subsequent one and a half years, Nigeria’s debt portfolio expanded sharply, fueled by an increase in domestic borrowings and a significant depreciation of the naira.
As of June 2023, the DMO reported Nigeria’s external debt at N33.25 trillion and domestic debt at N54.13 trillion. By December 2024, external obligations had increased to N70.29 trillion, while domestic borrowings rose to N74.38 trillion.
The sharp rise in external borrowing, both in terms of size and share, has shifted the composition of Nigeria’s overall debt, with external liabilities nearing 50 per cent of the total public debt burden.
However, when denominated in U.S. dollars, Nigeria’s debt profile tells a different story. Total public debt dropped from $113.42 billion in June 2023 to $94.23 billion by December 2024, a 17 per cent decline in nominal terms.
This decline is not attributed to reduced borrowing but rather to the significant devaluation of the naira, which plunged from N770.38/$ in mid-2023 to approximately N1,535/$ by year-end 2024.
The naira’s weakening has substantially inflated the local currency valuation of Nigeria’s foreign currency debts. Although the dollar figures of external borrowings remained relatively stable, their naira equivalents nearly doubled.
For instance, the Federal Government’s external debt climbed from N29.9 trillion in June 2023 to N62.92 trillion in December 2024, while the combined external debt of states and the Federal Capital Territory rose from N3.35 trillion to N7.37 trillion within the same timeframe.
In contrast, domestic borrowings by state governments and the FCT fell, declining from N5.82 trillion in June 2023 to N3.97 trillion by the end of 2024. This drop may signal limited borrowing access at the sub-national level as debt costs rise.
At the federal level, the combined debt portfolio — domestic and foreign — expanded from N78.21 trillion to N133.33 trillion, reinforcing the Federal Government’s dominant share of over 90 per cent of the nation’s total indebtedness.
Nigeria’s debt composition has tilted more toward external borrowings, with foreign debt accounting for 38 per cent in June 2023 and increasing to nearly 49 per cent by December 2024. During this period, the Federal Government’s domestic debt alone increased by over N22.1 trillion, rising from N48.31 trillion as of June 30, 2023, to N70.41 trillion by the end of 2024 — a 45.7 per cent rise according to DMO data.
As of June 2023, FGN Bonds comprised the bulk of the Federal Government’s domestic debt at N41.97 trillion, making up 86.9 per cent of the total N48.31 trillion debt stock. Nigerian Treasury Bills amounted to N4.72 trillion, while other debt instruments — including Sukuk, Green Bonds, Savings Bonds, and Promissory Notes — contributed marginal amounts. Promissory Notes and Sukuk stood at N780 billion and N742.56 billion respectively, while Green Bonds and FGN Savings Bonds accounted for less than 0.1 per cent each.
By December 2024, total domestic debt had climbed to N70.41 trillion, reflecting an increase of N22.1 trillion. A substantial contributor to this growth was the securitisation of the N22.7 trillion Ways and Means Advances previously owed to the Central Bank, which were converted into tradable bonds following legislative and presidential approval in May 2023.
This restructured debt accounts for over 32 per cent of the domestic debt accumulated since the Tinubu administration began.
FGN Bonds remained dominant in the debt mix as of December 2024, totaling N55.44 trillion, which includes N54.03 trillion in naira-denominated bonds and N1.41 trillion in domestic dollar bonds. This segment constituted 78.7 per cent of total domestic debt. Treasury Bills rose sharply to N12.35 trillion, more than doubling from June 2023 levels, indicating an increased dependence on short-term debt instruments to address fiscal shortfalls.
FGN Sukuk instruments reached N992.56 billion, while Savings Bonds rose to N72.87 billion. Green Bonds remained unchanged at N15 billion.
Promissory Notes also grew significantly to N1.54 trillion, twice the amount reported in June 2023. Of this, N425.6 billion were in naira, while the remaining N1.12 trillion were dollar-denominated and owed to local entities.
A notable trend in the 2024 debt profile is the increasing integration of dollar-denominated instruments within the domestic debt market. For instance, a US dollar-denominated FGN Bond issued on September 6, 2024, was valued at $917.41 million and converted to naira at N1,535.32/$.
Similarly, foreign-denominated promissory notes worth $727.24 million were valued using the same rate. This development signals a broader move toward incorporating foreign exchange-linked instruments in the domestic market, likely to attract foreign investors and members of the diaspora.
The spike in short-term debt tools such as Treasury Bills also suggests liquidity constraints, as the government seeks rapid funding to meet urgent budgetary needs.
The share of Treasury Bills in the Federal Government’s domestic debt mix rose from 9.8 per cent in June 2023 to 17.5 per cent by December 2024. The debt accumulation has occurred alongside significant fiscal reforms and a weakening naira.
Since the currency unification policy was introduced in June 2023, the naira has depreciated substantially, from N770.38 to N1,535.32 per dollar.
Although the devaluation directly affects external debt more, it also influences domestic borrowing costs by stoking inflation and increasing investor demands for higher yields.
Overall, the 45.7 per cent growth in domestic debt under the Tinubu administration reflects both inherited liabilities and new debt taken to finance budget deficits. Meanwhile, the Federal Government’s external debt rose from $43.16 billion in June 2023 to $45.78 billion by December 2024 — a $2.62 billion increase, or 6.1 per cent.
Despite the modest dollar increase, the naira valuation of the external debt soared due to exchange rate volatility.
According to DMO’s data from June 2023, Nigeria’s external debt comprised loans from multilateral and bilateral lenders, as well as commercial borrowings such as Eurobonds. By the end of 2024, the external debt figure had grown, supported by fresh disbursements and bond issuances. Multilateral lenders remained Nigeria’s primary creditors, accounting for nearly 49 per cent of the external debt.
Loans from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) increased from $14.03 billion to $16.56 billion. Borrowings from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) also rose from $485.75 million to $1.24 billion. Debt owed to the African Development Bank climbed from $1.55 billion to $2.10 billion.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF), which previously provided emergency funding through the Rapid Financing Instrument, reduced its exposure from $3.26 billion to $800.23 million. The IMF recently confirmed that Nigeria had repaid the $3.4 billion disbursed in 2020 to mitigate the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. The repayment was completed on April 30, 2025.
Bilateral creditors such as China, France, Germany, Japan, and India retained a presence in Nigeria’s external debt profile. Loans from the Export-Import Bank of China rose from $4.73 billion to $5.06 billion. France’s Agence Française de Développement held steady at $592.60 million, while Germany’s KfW declined slightly to $105.78 million. Japan and India’s combined exposures remained below $75 million.
Commercial debts also increased significantly, with Eurobond liabilities rising from $15.62 billion in June 2023 to $17.32 billion by December 2024 — a $1.7 billion increase used to address foreign exchange and fiscal needs. Eurobonds represented 37.8 per cent of Nigeria’s total external debt portfolio.
No outstanding Diaspora Bonds or significant syndicated loans were reported in 2024. A $54.87 million syndicated loan from Deutsche Bank remained the only such facility. Notably, earlier promissory notes and syndicated loans listed in June 2023 — totaling $931.7 million and $300 million respectively — had been fully repaid or removed by the end of 2024.
The impact of currency depreciation on the naira valuation of Nigeria’s external debt is profound. While the nation added just over $2.6 billion in new obligations, the naira equivalent surged from N33.25 trillion in June 2023 to N70.29 trillion in December 2024.
Despite reforms — including the removal of fuel subsidies, currency floatation, and tax reform efforts — the rise in debt continues unabated. Debt servicing has consumed an increasing portion of government revenue. Although President Tinubu’s administration has pledged to boost revenue and reduce inefficiencies, meaningful fiscal consolidation remains a challenge.
In a related development, the Federal Government has submitted a request to the World Bank for a new $500 million loan to support a nationwide agricultural initiative aimed at revitalising value chains and generating employment.
Details of the loan request, titled “Nigeria Sustainable Agricultural Value-Chains for Growth,” were contained in a World Bank Project Information Document released on May 1, 2025. The initiative will be led by the Federal Ministry of Finance, with implementation support from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and select state governments.
The programme aims to address productivity bottlenecks and infrastructural deficits in key sectors such as rice, cocoa, cashew, and cassava. It also seeks to enhance market access, land tenure, and agricultural financing mechanisms.
Although agriculture contributed 25 per cent of GDP in 2024 and accounted for 40 per cent of non-oil exports, the sector remains underdeveloped and largely informal. Nigeria’s agricultural labour productivity, averaging $3,527 per worker annually, lags behind the $7,782 average for middle-income countries.
The project will support both public investments and private sector engagement, targeting irrigation infrastructure, climate-smart practices, post-harvest facilities, and streamlined regulations to stimulate agribusiness.
It also includes provisions for land administration reforms to enhance land-based financing opportunities in regions earmarked for value-chain clustering.
Highlighting the urgency, the Bank noted that over 31 million Nigerians experienced acute food insecurity in 2024 due to inflation, conflict, and climate change. Nigeria ranked 110th out of 127 countries in the Global Hunger Index that year.
To promote impact and transparency, the programme will adopt a results-based financing model. States that meet reform benchmarks will qualify for higher funding allocations, encouraging competition and accountability.
The programme will prioritise rural communities, especially women and youth, and strengthen agricultural cooperatives, research institutions, and agribusinesses. The private sector is expected to play a central role in the programme’s design and delivery, with incentives such as credit guarantees and risk-sharing tools to de-risk investments.
The initiative aligns with Nigeria’s National Agricultural Technology and Innovation Policy (2022–2027) and supports the World Bank’s broader goal of boosting job creation and economic diversification in Nigeria.
Earlier, the Bank approved $1.08 billion across three separate financing operations to support improvements in education, nutrition, and economic resilience for underserved Nigerian communities.
