The Debt Management Office (DMO) has disclosed that the Nigerian Government borrowed ₦6.64 trillion in 2021 and serviced debt with ₦2.93 trillion.
Bibian Anekwe News reports that the Director-General of the office, Patience Oniha, made this disclosure at a media briefing in Abuja on Thursday.
She stated that Nigeria’s total public debt jumped from N32.92tn in 2020 to N39.56tn or $95.78bn as of December 31, 2021.The DMO boss stated that the country’s total debt includes new borrowings by the Federal Government and the sub-nationals.
Oniha also said that the amount helped in financing the budget deficit, capital projects and support economic recovery.She said, “Nigeria’s total public debt as of December 31, 2021, was N39.56tn or $95.78bn. The amount represents the total external and domestic debts of the Federal Government of Nigeria, 36 state governments and the federal capital territory.
The comparable figure for December 31, 2020, was N32.92tn or $86.39bn. The public debt stock for December 31, 2021, includes new borrowings by the FGN and the sub-nationals. For the FGN, it would be recalled that the 2021 appropriation and supplementary acts, included total new borrowings (from domestic and external sources) of N5.49tn to part-finance the deficit.
“Borrowings for this purpose and disbursements by the multilateral and bilateral creditors account for a significant portion of the increase in the debt stock. Increases were also recorded in the debt stock of the states and the FCT.”Oniha further said that despite the debt increase, the country is still within the total public debt stock to the Gross Domestic Product limit set by the World Bank and that of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
She also said that the Federal Government was aware of the relatively high debt-to-revenue ratio, asking Nigerians not to worry about the dept increase.
The DMO boss added that the government has established certain measures to increase revenues through the strategic revenue growth initiative and the introduction of Finance Acts since 2019.
She said, “The new borrowings were raised from diverse sources, primarily through the issuances of the Eurobonds, sovereign Sukuk, and the FGN bonds. These capital raisings were utilised to finance capital projects and support economic recovery.
“With the total public debt stock to GDP as at December 31, 2021, of 22.47 per cent, the debt-to-GDP ratio still remains within Nigeria’s self-imposed limit of 40 per cent. This ratio is prudent when compared to the 55 per cent limit advised by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund for countries in Nigeria’s peer group, as well as, the ECOWAS convergence ratio of 70 per cent.
Bibian Anekwe News
