Amid growing and widespread prices of food, poverty, and insecurity, Nigeria’s public debt stock grew to N46.25 trillion or $103.11 billion in Year 2022, plunging the country deeper into a debilitating debt trap following a borrowing spree undertaken by the outgoing Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
The nation’s Debt Management Office (DMO) in its latest report on the country’s debt overhang, states that the shock rose to the current figure of 39.56 trillion or $95.77 in December 2021.
 
The report shows the domestic component was N27.55 trillion or $61.42 billion while the foreign component was N18.70 trillion or $41.69 billion.
 
“As of December 31, 2023, the total public debt stock consisting of the domestic and external debt stock of the Federal government and the 36 States and the FCT was N46.25 trillion or $103.11 billion. The comparative figure for December 31, 2021 i,s N39.56 trillion or $95.77 billion”, according to the DMO.
 
The debt office admitted the debt growth owed to new borrowings by both the FG and states, primarily to fund the budget deficit and execute projects.

Also, promissory notes issued by the federal government to settle some liabilities contributed to the growth of the public debt stock.
Nigeria, since the debut of the outgoing Muhammadu Buhari h, has embarked on a borrowing spree aided by the National AsAssemblyhich has done little to curb the scourge.
 
Apart from borrowings to fund budget deficits, huge debts had also been sourced to finance the wasteful oil subsidy regimes and the sustenance of the cocountry’suge cost of governance.
 
Auwal Ibrahim Musa Rafsanjani, Director of, the Civil Society and Legislative Advocacy Centre, attributed the debt growth to a lack of transparency on lending and borrowing and the inability to track the funds.

He blamed the huge debt stock on the nonchalance of lawmakers in granting requests for loans at the detriment of Nigerians whose interests they were elected to protect.
“We are deeply concerned with the lack of vigorous scrutiny and attention by the lawmakers in granting requests for loans without reflecting the provisions of the Fiscal Responsibility Act, and the greater implication of the nation’s economic state.”

“The Nigerian legislators have a constitutional and legislative mandate to approve loan requests only based on public interest and should put this clause as a prerequisite to any approvals they might want to give to the president’s requests for further borrowings”, Rafsanjani stated.
The DMO however said the debt is sustainable, citing some measures currently being employed.

“On-going efforts by the government to increase revenue from oil and non-oil and sources through initiatives such as Finance Acts and the Strategic Revenue Mobilisation Initiative are expected to support debt sustainability,” stated the Debt Office which noted that the total public debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has increased but still within limits.

The total public debt to GDP for December 2022 was 23.20 percent, slightly above the 22.47 per cent envisaged for the period.

The DMO, however, said the 23.20 percent ratio is within the 40 percent that was self-imposed, and below the 55 percent by the duo of World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and also, under the 70 percent limit by the ECOWAS.