Nigeria’s national debt grew from roughly N85 trillion to N93.7 trillion in the last three months of 2023, as stated in a report by the National Debt Management Office (DMO).
The report explained that the government borrowed more money to cover the shortfall in its 2024 budget, which caused this increase. This has led to a 118 percent jump in Nigeria’s debt compared to the N46.52 trillion recorded at the end of 2022.
To figure out how much debt each person in Nigeria owes based on these numbers, the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ) divided the total debt by Nigeria’s population, which the World Bank says is 218 million people. This calculation shows that every Nigerian is responsible for N446,000 of this debt.
Out of the total debt, 61 percent is owed within the country. The report also mentioned that a big part of the money borrowed from other countries in the last quarter of 2023 was through loans with low interest rates.
Regarding specific states, Lagos, Delta, and Ogun have the highest levels of public debt. On the other hand, Ebonyi, Kebbi, and Jigawa states have the least debt, with amounts of N70.44 billion, N60.69 billion, and N42.76 billion, respectively.
Earlier, Business Day reported that for the first nine months of 2023, Nigeria spent about 66.9 percent of its income on paying off debts.
Looking ahead, the government plans to spend N8.25 trillion on debt payments in 2024, which is about 45 percent of its expected income and 29 percent of its planned spending for the year.
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