FGN
Iyunade Grace
Nigeria’s total public debt climbed to *₦159.28 trillion* as of December 2025, according to the Debt Management Office (DMO) data referenced in the Channels 24 report. This marks the latest step in a steep upward trend: public debt was ₦97.34 trillion at end-2023, rose to ₦144.665 trillion by December 2024, then hit ₦153.29 trillion at end-Q3 2025, before reaching ₦159.28 trillion in December 2025.
The December 2025 figure represents a *₦14.6 trillion or 10.1% increase* from the ₦144.67 trillion recorded a year earlier, and a 5.9% rise from the ₦153.29 trillion level at the end of Q3 2025. Year-on-year, the jump from December 2023 to December 2024 was even sharper: ₦47.32 trillion, or 48.58%. The DMO has consistently attributed these increases to new borrowings and the impact of naira depreciation, which inflates the naira value of dollar-denominated debt.
The debt stock is split between external and domestic obligations. By December 2024, external debt had surged 83.89% year-on-year to ₦70.29 trillion ($45.78 billion), while domestic debt rose 25.77% to ₦74.38 trillion ($48.44 billion). As of June 2025, domestic debt alone stood at ₦80.55 trillion, dominated by Federal Government bonds at ₦60.65 trillion — 79.2% of domestic debt. That includes ₦36.52 trillion in naira bonds, ₦22.72 trillion in securitised Ways and Means advances, and ₦1.40 trillion in dollar bonds.
The Federal Government carries the bulk of the burden. At end-June 2025, the FG accounted for ₦141.08 trillion, or 92.6% of total public debt: ₦64.49 trillion external and ₦76.59 trillion domestic. States and the FCT owed a combined ₦11.32 trillion, or 7.4% of the total, with $4.81 billion (₦7.36 trillion) external and ₦3.96 trillion domestic. Lagos, Rivers, and Ogun were the most indebted states at end-2024, with ₦900 billion, ₦364 billion, and ₦211 billion respectively.
Debt service is now the key pressure point. The World Bank’s April 2026 Nigeria Development Update said Nigeria’s debt service-to-revenue ratio stood at 49.5% in 2025, even though the debt-to-GDP ratio remains low by international standards. That squeeze is cutting capital spending: it fell from 1.3% of GDP in 2024 to 1.0% in 2025, with debt service “systematically crippling the nation’s ability to fund critical infrastructure.
Borrowing is accelerating in 2026. Under the 2026 Appropriation Act, FG plans to borrow ₦29.2 trillion to cover the gap between ₦68.32 trillion revenue and ₦36.87 trillion expenditure — a quarterly target of ₦7.3 trillion. But in Q1 2026 alone, government already borrowed ₦8.1 trillion domestically, plus $6 billion in new external loans approved by NASS, suggesting it may exceed the annual target again.
The DMO insists public debt remains within sustainable limits. At end-2022, the debt-to-GDP ratio was 23.2%, well below Nigeria’s 40% self-imposed limit, the World Bank/IMF’s 55% threshold, and ECOWAS’s 70% ceiling. However, analysts warn that rising debt service costs and exchange-rate adjustments are the real risks. Tinubu’s administration says reforms — subsidy removal, FX unification, and the new tax framework under the Nigeria Revenue Service — are meant to boost revenue and reduce reliance on borrowing over time.
So the ₦159.28 trillion figure reflects both legacy issues and new policy choices: securitised Ways and Means, fresh external loans, and naira depreciation have pushed the nominal stock higher, while government argues the reforms will eventually stabilise the ratio and free up funds for infrastructure. For now, though, debt service is consuming nearly half of revenue, keeping fiscal space tight.
